My Only Request
by White Shade
Summary: The REAL Baelfire returns to Storybrooke, on a mission to find his father and find out why and how magic has found its way into this realm. Regina figures out who he is and intends to show Rumpelstiltskin that all magic does indeed come with a price. Requested by Promise777. My 50th story on this cite. Enjoy and plz review.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This is a request from Promise777. The ideas are brilliant, but this is just the intro. This marks my 50th story on this website. Enjoy!

**My Only Request**

**Chapter One: The Real Return**

Time stops, aging futile; memories run bland, dry, and cracked like they seemed to never have existed. After Emma came to town, everything changed. Storybrooke, as if a beast in itself, began to awaken: people began to realize that events were actually taking place, that they had lives, and that their entire past life was stripped from them out of greed and selfishness belonging to the woman who declared herself the mayor of the town.

Now, she is in hiding. Her magic returned to her, but still, she was no match for her counterpart. No, that man was far too strong, far too motivated, and his eyes showed her nothing but an emptiness and zero empathy for her anymore. No one listened, and all because of that girl they call Emma.

Regina hid far in the woods, though she couldn't bring herself to leave Storybrooke, fearing that somehow, they were all still trapped here. Of course, that was not the worst part of it for her along this line. On a brighter note, no one had hunted her down, Mr. Gold didn't even bother to help anyone but himself, and now the two had their magic back.

The magic...it was never anything anyone wanted back, no matter how much they thought they did. Snow and her Prince Charming could live without it, for their lives, though proven simple, granted happiness. Remembering was the icing on the cake for them, causing all the pain and suffering to go away. But oh no no no, that was too perfect you see. There was no way in the living Hell that Mr. Gold would waste his own precious plan to return magic to Storybrooke as a safety precaution for "a rainy day" as he liked to put it.

Belle, the love of his life he thought was a lost cause, hopeless to save, was still alive. With her memories came consequences, as did everyone else's. Hers, though, they were special to him, for it was he who drove her away because he loved her. He chose the power for the second time over the people in his life. The first was his son...

His son...Baelfire, his only broken deal turned out to be the one that haunted him forever. The curse was supposed to bring him back, Rumpelstiltskin was supposed to find his son. That had been his main purpose for his dark creation, helping the queen was a side business.

The boy, trapped in another realm, perhaps grown up or perhaps not, Rumpelstiltskin knew not what had become of him. With each passing day, he'd walk out into the woods, no matter how his leg had treated him and look for his only son. When he found Belle, or rather, when Belle found him, Mr. Gold knew that he would have to keep her closer than he had ever before. Convincing himself to never let her go again but still keep focused on the task at hand since the beginning was a difficult task for him to carry out.

Still, he managed, looking hopelessly even after magic had returned to Storybrooke from the true love potion he'd made Emma snag for him. Belle was to reside at his home, for he promised to protect her always, never letting any more harm come upon her, and now that he had his power, that wasn't too much to ask. Keeping the dagger with him at all times, Rumpelstiltskin took Belle into the forest every morning. To her, it was walk. To him, he was searching forever.

As the magic came, so did the gold dust on his skin. Slowly, he was morphing back into who he was before the curse: a beast, however his magic could also alter appearances. So, he kept the tone of the gold dust at bay, let his hair curl back again, but he knew for a fact he would never allow for his fingernails to be as long as they were in the past. He decided to keep them as they were a few months after he gained his power.

This new magic, exposed to the town, created almost no change expect in the very atmosphere of the town. The roots of the town were not in magic, but the people were, and that concept began to show within weeks. Belle was the only one who seemed to him difficulty remembering everything clearly, for although she was able to recall his name, their love, the dark castle, and Gaston, she seemed to have a certain trouble piecing the puzzle of the Evil Queen together. The poor girl couldn't even think of the reason Regina wanted her locked up...well, besides to use against Mr. Gold when she got desperate.

* * *

Today though, Emma's arrival would be outmatched, overpowered by someone else. She may have broken the curse, but the people were all the same for the most part. This arrival, with him in town, there was no telling what could happen now. There was something about the little town, a little place that he thought sounded familiar to him.

As the lad drove down the road on a blue moped, he remembered everything. He'd always known everything from his past, and that was why he was coming back. When the sign of welcome came into view, the boy stopped...for along with this town, despite his disappearance, his roots were in magic. Therefore, his aging had ceased until now, and he could feel it every step of the way. The essence of the magic...

Taking a deep breath, the boy brushed back his dark brown hair, the same hairstyle he'd had since he left this place behind. Now, eccentrically, Storybrooke seemed completely foreign to him, yet he knew he was in the right place. Sighing, the boy lifted up the hood on his dirt brown cloak to hide his face for now. Equipped with a few bags on his back and strapped down, he revved up the moped again.

"I'll find you, Papa. I always have," he whispered to himself.

"Hey! Hey kid!" a voice sliced through the air. The boy turned to see a woman dressed in business-like clothing, ratted and covered with filth. "Where are you going?"

"I'm coming into town," he replied. "Now if you'll excuse me I must be going..."

"What's your name?" the woman asked, wiping some blood from the side of her mouth. The boy wouldn't answer her, sensing there was something very wrong about her. Just the way she carried herself made him uneasy. Perhaps it was that stone coal black hair.

Bae drove past the boarder without another word. He'd come to Storybrooke. He'd come home.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two: A Father and a Son**

He could already sense the magic in the air, and with the strength to knock out any oder. He was familiar with it, but it would pass, as he figured, the closer he rode into the civilized portion of the town.

The sound of a school bell made Bae almost fall off his moped, for he was startled that much. As the children came pouring out, Bae spotted a boy with his teacher still in the classroom. The woman looked familiar to him, but he shook it off. He might know her, but after a few minutes, he continued his way downtown, where he came upon Granny's Bed and Breakfast.

The boy stumbled in, where he found Red at the counter talking with Granny.

"Hey, shouldn't you be in school?" Red said, eyeing him suspiciously.

"No..." Bae spat back and cleared his both. "I've come looking for someone."

Red's head jerked back in shock. This one had an attitude!

"You're cute," Red said. "Anything I can get you?"

"Son," Granny chimed in. "I'll give you what you need..." Red walked back to her business, disappointed that her grandma ruined her moment...again.

When Granny returned, she handed him a map to the town.

"Start on the end, work your way. Shouldn't take long," the old woman told him. Bae looked up at her, knowing that he knew her. She knew he knew her, and so she smiled, winking at the boy.

"You haven't changed much. Still strong and hard headed I see," she added. "You know what, here..." Granny mixed up an iced tea, dropping a hint of mint inside, pouring the contents into a plastic cup.

"On the house."

Bae took a sip, thanking her, and walking out of the shop.

"Okay, you _so_ know him!" Red called her grandmother out, but Granny just smiled and continued on with her work, hearing the bell as Bae walked out, turning on his moped and driving off again after looking at the map.

* * *

He knew exactly where to stop, but he thought long and hard about what to say as he rode along. This clearly had the potential to _not_ end well.

The little bell rang to Mr. Gold's Pawn Shop, but there was no Mr. Gold. Mr. Gold's absence was just fine for the moment, for Bae found everything around told its own tale, and his eyes had already stuck to his kickball. That old kickball he used to hit along the side of the house. Sometimes, his father would yell at him for it; however, with no one else to play with, Bae found that he hadn't any other choice.

He walked slowly towards the ball, knowing he could easily reach it from where his father probably set it. Baelfire felt the cloth of the ball, smiling at the memories he had with it. Proceeding to look around at everything in the shop, he wondered exactly how many old things this Mr. Gold kept. The name couldn't have been more obvious to the boy.

"Pardon my rudeness," a voice sounded, coming from the back. "I'll be out in a moment." Bae froze.

That was definitely his father! He had no idea what to do. Everything he dreamt he would say fled from his mind. Just the sound of his father's voice was comforting yet a rude awakening. He was here, he was ready, or so he thought, and he told himself over and over that he had to do this.

Taking a deep breath, Baelfire ceased to look at anything else in the shop, except the knives, just in case...Speaking of knives, where was that old dagger Rumpelstiltskin always-

"Can I help you?" Mr. Gold's voice sounded.

Bae was turned around, shutting his eyes tightly, wondering if he should just turn around and say nothing, or if he should say one of those things he'd been longing to say. What if he started simple?

"Yes," Bae replied, putting his hood down. "You can help me understand."

Mr. Gold's face altered in confusion. Then, Baelfire turned around, revealing that same look of a teenage boy, that brown hair with a curl at the bottom, as Rumpel's did, and that face of innocence, though his eyes were the most intensifying feature. Mr. Gold nearly dropped to his knees, placing both hands on the glass in front of him to catch his balance.

Bae heard Rumpel sigh, forcefully and in a shocked state, unsure of what to say.

"Bae...is that really you?" Rumpel stuttered, looking the boy in the eyes. They were silent, and Baelfire stared at his father, still feeling a heavy loss in his life, and a resentment that never left him.

"Baelfire...I've been looking everywhere for you..." Rumpel said, but Bae found that too generic for him to say. If he wanted Bae back in his life, he'd have to do a whole hell of a lot better than that.

His eyes held a darkness, and Rumpel saw that, but the shock prevented him from deciphering the meaning of that darkness.

Bae's eyes squinted slightly, he took into ball in his hands and as he looked at it, an idea came into his mind.

"Prove it," he said quickly, and then he rushed out the door. Rumpelstiltskin was forced abruptly from his awakening moment, the realization that Bae was actually there set in rather briskly.

Rumpelstiltskin hit the table.

"Wait!" he yelled. "BAE!" He ran out the door after his son, noticing he ran into the woods, carrying the ball. If his father really wanted him back, he'd have to chase him down...as a start. He needed time.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three: Differences Aside**

No time to think, only react, and Rumpelstiltskin's instincts were set for over 28 years, and to have Bae within feet of his grasp, was the final catalyst. Now that his leg was no longer bothering him, for the magic had finally set in, he could run freely. However, his leg's recovery was the last miracle he noticed in his life. Bae was thirty feet away.

"Bae!" He yelled, but the boy didn't respond, he just kept running. Bae stopped briefly to find a pathway to follow, and as he heard his father tailing close behind, he sharply curved to the left, thinking that he was headed for a stream of water.

He began doubting his memory, for there was no water in sight as he kept running. Now, he couldn't hear his father. As much as he resented his father, his intent here was not to run away. It was to get him alone.

Baelfire set the ball down, giving it a hard smash across the forest. Rumpelstiltskin eyed the ball slowing to a stop, so he picked it up. That kid can run! Rumpel walked through the bushes, wondering where Bae went, never giving up and almost ready to run again.

But that was no longer necessary, for Baelfire had settled near an ancient opening path between two trees, and just beyond, was the stream the boy had been looking for.

"Father! How could you!" Bae shouted as soon as he saw his father appear in front of him, the kickball in hand.

"How could I what...Bae, come here," Rumpel said.

"No!" Bae spat. "How could you just let me go?"

"Bae, please just give me a few moments," his father begged. "Bae, I've been searching everywhere for you. You have to understand."

Bae sat silent, the same look in his eyes: cold and candid, as his father's eyes were when he made a deal.

"You let me go! You let me leave _alone_, all because of that power you just had to have..." Baelfire spat.

Rumpel's eyes reflected a sense of truth, for there was nothing to hide between these two. There was nothing to deny and as it had always been, Bae was right. He was the bigger man. Rumpelstiltskin, as he stared into his son's eyes, becoming angry himself.

"I did this all for you! I did it to protect you. The power was to protect you, and that was what mattered to me..."

"Yeah, you proved that when you refused to come with me," Bae sarcastically stated, turning his head away. "The power, it consumes you, even to this day. Magic isn't even supposed to be here!"

"I brought the magic to create this world so I could find you! I used magic to create a world with no magic. A curse, Bae! All so I could find you."

"Magic is here, I can sense it everywhere. I thought you'd be here still, and there's still magic! Why is it here?" Bae demanded.

"I brought it back when the savior broke the curse, because it had to come back."

"So YOU found a way to bring it back, as soon as this curse was broken...I should have known. I should have known, you still haven't changed at-," Bae said, unable to catch his footing.

Rumpel had been walking closer as his son was backing up. He tripped over a root, and the closest thing to grab was a branch...a branch drenched in broken smaller branches, and as his hand slid down the tree until he caught himself, a large scrape formed across his entire palm.

"Ah!" he said quietly as he usually did, hiding the wound. Then back to his father, "You haven't changed at all." He stepped over the branch.

"Bae, you aren't listening," Rumpel countered. Baelfire felt the sting in his palm, feeling his own liquid blood filling within his already drenched fist. Tightening to stop the pain, but Bae looked to the ground.

"Bae, the only way I could find you was a curse. The curse was broken, so I needed magic to create another! Bae?"

Baelfire, thinking he'd outgrown this, thought that scrape must be more than that. He opened his fist and spun around, walking towards the stream of water, letting a grunt escape his lips.

"Boy, what happened?" Rumpelstiltskin saw the blood that hit the dirt path beneath where Bae had been standing. "Are you hurt?" His father began walking closer to him, but Bae turned around, pulling his left hand from the stream.

"I'm fine," Bae insisted, but Rumpel saw the blood. "I can handle it!"

"Bae, let me help, trust me I-"

"Like I trusted you not to break our deal?" Bae spat. Rumpel shook that counterattack off, but it felt harsh, gnawing away at him that his own son still resented him this much. He knew circumstances would be bad, but Bae wouldn't even allow him to touch his hand!

"Fair enough, we'll play it your way," Rumpel said, sitting next to him by the water. "I will not use magic."

"No magic? You promise me no magic?" Bae said, softening only slightly. After all, he was the Dark One's son.

"I promise Son, no magic," Rumpel said.

Bae smirked, impressed his father even remembered his resentment towards magic. There was a silent moment as they stared into each other's eyes, both of them surprised they were even able to do that. Listening to calming sound of the stream's flow, Bae thought to give him another chance, as his father seemed to always need.

Baelfire tore a strip of cloth from a rag around his own clothing, handing it to his father. Then, he held out his left hand. What he thought was a scrape was actually a gash. The blood ran deep, and Rumpelstiltskin finally saw the urgency of the wound.

"Get that back in the water boy," he said, though there was purple aurora just begging to unleash itself onto Baelfire, ready to start healing him in moments.

_No_, Rumpelstiltskin told himself, _my son prefers it this way._ As Bae let the wound soak, not even flinching, Rumpelstiltskin watched the blood run down the clear water, turning the color red, and every moment, he fought himself for his son's preference.

Rumpelstiltskin lifted his son's hand gently from the water, holding his hand so it had room to sprawl out in his own. This was his left hand...The images, the sounds, the darkness. The Dark One saw the past of a coward before him, no matter how much power he possessed.

* * *

He could see Bae coming back into the house, not looking at him for a few seconds as he told the maid to fetch them their supper. Bae's words echoed in his mind... _'you hurt people all the time' 'so will this...'_ and then he recalled Bae taking out that old kit of medicine! Sometimes, he wondered why he hadn't just tossed the old thing. At that time, he abided to Bae's wishes, and then Bae begged him to get rid of the power somehow...and when Baelfire shook his hand, Rumpelstiltskin made a deal he thought for sure he understood.

And then there were Bae's screams. He begged his father to come with him to a place where they could live together. However, there was no magic, and that was when Rumpelstiltskin backed away, no matter how hard his son pulled him down.

'_You coward! You broke our deal!' _he'd yelled to him, and that was rough, coming from his own son. And all Rumpelstiltskin said was that he couldn't go through the vortex. There was no other reason, he didn't give his son a reason even for breaking the deal, and then he just let him go.

He chose the power over his own son...

* * *

Baelfire looked at his hand to make sure his father wouldn't cheat him out on this either, for he could never be sure. Being given up on does that to a kid. He smirked though, remembering the look on his father's face when he came in the house after that scene in town with the man and his donkey. The whole thing was his fault in the first place, and he was the one who made the mistake of chasing after the kickball. Yet the man was turned into a snail and stepped on!

He remembered his passive attitude towards his father, and that was the day he decided to talk to him about the power. After all, Bae always preferred to work to earn what he kept. As he handed his father the old medicine kit, proposing he be healed the mortal way.

* * *

'_I need more power to protect you,'_ his father had said, and they had a clash then too about the power. Baelfire remembered his happiness when his father told him that all that mattered to him was his son's happiness. Bae thought for sure the magic bean would work.

Baelfire didn't have abandonment issues, nor did he have daddy issues. What ailed Bae was trust. When his father let him go...Baelfire remembered to trust no one, for he couldn't even trust his own father after he let him go, only apologizing for letting him go into a vortex to this world. Away from his father forever, and all he had to say was _'I'm sorry, Bae.'_

* * *

Rumpelstiltskin finished his work, but he couldn't bring himself to release Bae's hand. Like Belle, Rumpelstiltskin felt as though he was dreaming, but touch proved him otherwise. Feeling in a dream is impossible...so this must be real!

Baelfire's skin held a certain coarseness about it Rumpel couldn't recall. What had this boy been doing for all these 28 ageless years?

"You know, Papa, if you were honest with yourself, you'd admit that you also want the power," Bae said finally, breaking the silence as a knife would tear skin.

"Maybe...but Bae," Rumpel said. "Ever since you left, I regretted what I did to you. I had no right, Bae. You are my son, and I should have known. I just have one question..."

Bae listened.

"I thought only those affected by the curse didn't age, and that's here, in Storybrooke. You've been here far longer than when _I_ unleashed the curse, so how is it that you haven't aged a hair?"

"I've wondered about that...but I am _your_ son, therefore I am not untouched by magic. Cost me more harm than good." Bae pulled his hand away and stood up.

"Well I'm sorry if I'm a curse on your life Bae, but you can't choose family," Rumpelstiltskin's tone was vitriolic as he spoke those words. The boy seemed hopeless to talk to at this point!

"No, I cannot," Bae said, being rather calm now about this. Getting angry wouldn't do any good now, Baelfire realized. It would only make things worse between them, and Baelfire didn't come here for that. He didn't search for countless hours while enjoying the modern lifestyle, feeling lost and alone, just to come to his father and fight, no matter how much he wanted to.

"So Papa, I have another deal for you," Bae said, and at that, Rumpelstiltskin's head pricked up. Bae sat quiet for a little bit, finding the courage inside of him to speak what was on his mind.

"I want to spend some time with you," Baelfire told him sincerely. "I don't care what we do, but I didn't come here to argue. So, in exchange for a roof over my head, I propose that you may put me to work."

"Bae..." Rumpelstiltskin said, looking at his son and smirked. "You don't have to make a deal with me for a roof over your head. You can stay..."

"Then at least put me to work. Perhaps I could work in the shop, give me something!" Bae demanded with a shrug. "I can't stand to sit around all day doing nothing."

"As you wish," Rumpelstiltskin replied.

Bae remembered that phrase all too well, and when he stood up, he needed a tree for support. He didn't know why, but he just couldn't hold it all in any longer. His father asked what was wrong, but Bae couldn't answer him. A little too harshly, Bae's body hit the tree's trunk, and he stared up to the sky, waiting for the tears to come.

"Bae, what's-"

Bae didn't need to tell him, instead he just brought his head back down and pulled his father into him. Rumpelstiltskin, of course not expecting this nor his son's strength, would have crashed into the tree had Bae not been there.

He could feel Bae's hands grasped tightly around his suit, showing no sign of letting go. For a few moments, Rumpelstiltskin merely allowed this to continue, hearing Bae's subdued lament, almost identical to his own.

His son really did not desire to fight with him, though he was still angry. For today, he was simply satisfied to have the option of hugging his father again.

"Papa," his muffled voice spoke, but by now, Mr. Gold was already pulling Bae closer.

"Let's go home, Son," he said, barely able to hold back his own tears. "Come with me."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four: Bae, Meet Belle**

Bae and his father never spoke on the way to the house, though upon their arrival, Bae gazed at the vast sight before him. His father owned a large home, perfectly comfortable for him it seemed.

"I have another guest. Her name is Belle. Just be nice," Rumpel said, turning away to unlock the door. His son was intrigued by this new girl, surprised his father hadn't killed her yet as he had a tendency to do with the other maids.

When they entered the house, Baelfire found it nearly as bad as the pawn shop, if not worse!

"What are you going to do with all this stuff?" Baelfire asked, sighing. "Seriously Papa?"

Rumpelstiltskin didn't say anything, partially because he really didn't have a reason other than sentimentality to keep all this stuff, and much of it wasn't really worth anything to him. The items were tokens of past deals, or they were things that once laid around the dark castle.

Belle came downstairs, her cotton dress flowing along behind her and her long brown hair, red ruby lips, and gentle blue eyes caught Bae's attention. This was no ordinary maid...

"Oh! I didn't know we were having a guest," Belle said. We?

"Belle...this is Baelfire..." Rumpelstiltskin presented, but Bae felt he should introduce himself.

"I am Baelfire, but please, call me Bae," the boy extended his hand.

"Belle," the girl introduced herself. That's when Baelfire looked back to his father, and that's when he saw it. The way he looked at her...

His father had a girlfriend! Bae smiled, thinking Rumpel couldn't be too bad if he picked up a girl since Bae's disappearance.

"Nice to meet you," he told her, going up the stairs. "I'll be staying a while."

"Why don't you help him establish upstairs Belle? I'll check up on you momentarily," Mr. Gold said, walking away into the other room. Belle looked at Bae, telling him to follow her up the glass spiral staircase.

Bae held everything on his person that was cumbersome otherwise, but he explained that he still had a moped to retrieve outside the shop. Belle introduced him to the room next to hers.

"Here you are," Belle said as Bae set some stuff on the bed, including a hunter's knife.

"Thank you. Hey, Belle," Bae replied. "How did you meet my-Rumpelstiltskin?" Bae thought to catch himself in mid sentence, just in case.

"A deal," Belle said. "It's complicated."

"All right, I'll be honest with you," Bae told her, and she looked at him in a rather confused fashion. He couldn't hide himself, for he didn't want to seem more of a stranger here than what he already was.

"I'm Rumpelstiltskin's son," Bae said. Her eyes widened and her eyebrows lifted. A gasp escaped her gentile lips. "And, if you don't mind me saying, you two seemed perfect for each other."

Belle was speechless, astounded at this young man's observation, and how quick he picked up on small details. Bae smiled at her again, telling her that he honestly didn't think his father would ever settle with anyone.

"He said he lost you," Belle said. "He told me...a long time ago."

"Well, I guess he found me again," Bae countered, quickly, not wanting to talk anymore about the subject. "I'm looking forward to getting to know you."

"Same here," Belle replied. "It's been so long, how old are you?"

"I'm 16, affected by that curse apparently everyone just got over too."

Belle didn't question this too much, she merely accepted things as they were now, and that Rumpelstiltskin's son was right in front of her. Bae went out of the room, ready to go and retrieve his moped from outside the pawn shop. He ran into his father on the way down the spiral staircase.

"Getting the moped," he said, rushing down the stairs before his father even had the chance to say anything.

"Bae!" Rumpel called, and as the boy turned around he threw a set of keys at him. The boy's reaction was far better than previously anticipated. "Lock up, please. Silver key."

There was only one silver key in the entire set of bunched keys on the ring, the rest had an emblem of a different gem on each. Bae smirked, his father was trusting him. He nodded, running out the door.

Rumpelstiltskin watched the boy leave, closing the door behind him.

"Your son...he's amazing," Belle said, and Rumpelstiltskin turned to see her at the top of the stairs. Rumpelstiltskin held the ball in front of him, looking down at it.

"I know..." was all he said as he made the rest of his way up, and then he kissed Belle's forehead. "I'm a very lucky man."

* * *

Regina glared, seeing the kid walking back to the pawn shop; however, she realized he hadn't been inside the entire time. She wondered about this kid, and before he mounted his blue moped again as he'd come, she saw him fiddling with the locks on the shop's doors. When he came back around, he took off towards Mr. Gold's house.

She thought about this, the smart woman she is, and she knew that something was up with this boy. Mr. Gold trusted him to lock up his shop. Who was he to him? Mr. Gold wouldn't even let Belle come out of that house sense he got her back unless she was with him. So, how could this boy, just coming to town, all of a sudden have Mr. Gold's respect?

Unless...unless he was blood.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: I just want to say that all my reviews lately have been wonderful! It's those that make me really want to keep updating. I'm happy to know that there are others enjoying the story as much as I do. Thanks to all my reviewers thus far!

**Chapter Five: Just Another Day**

As Bae settled in over the next two weeks or so, Belle noticed that there was clear tension between Rumpelstiltskin and his son. At first light one morning, Baelfire was out the door, leaving a written note for Rumpelstiltskin.

_Be back at eight sharp. Bae_

_PS- tell Belle good morning for me._

Belle was the one to in fact wake up first this particular morning. She was going to start organizing the mess in the living room, but she thought to make breakfast first. It was seven am, so whenever Bae headed out, he'd be back in an hour. She smiled at the thought that he left a small part for her in the note meant for his father.

* * *

Baelfire stalked the birds, getting as close as possible before one took off. He practiced for long hours usually, but now that he was working for his father in the shop starting today, he knew he'd have to cut his time in half, perhaps even more. After becoming two feet within a morning dove's space, Bae decided to move on, thinking he'd broken his record for sure. He concluded his morning of stealth and martial arts skills by climbing a tree, despite his wound sustained a while back. Who knew a tree could split his hand in such a fashion? Not that Bae cared about that much anymore, however there was a scar. It was a new day. He knew he had to patch things up with his father, that's why he'd come.

He pulled himself up and down on the strongest branch he could find, eventually climbing the tree full scale. Resting at the top, he gazed at the rewarding view before him. At that moment, he couldn't help but remember his father, how he was before all this magic hit him and he became the Dark One.

Inhaling deeply, satisfied with those memories, Bae climbed back down the tree, glancing at the sun. He'd have to be back soon. He'd already practiced with his knife, crossed the Troll Bridge, and even skinned a fish for breakfast over a small fire he created. Bae had never really slept right anywhere new for a while, surprisingly considering that he was on the move for 28 years straight, finding whatever he could for work, and now that he was with his father, Bae thought he'd feel safer, sleep better. Still, his instincts refused this, and he knew he'd pay for that later.

A fish for breakfast was plenty for him, and he took the tea Granny gave him from the fridge this morning, having some left. Sending the cooling liquid down his throat, the taste of mint came to him, making him smirk. He might need mint now that Belle was in the house.

As he made his way back, he spotted that same woman from before he entered the town in the forest nearby. She'd been watching him the whole time!

"What do you want?" Bae asked, staring her right in the eyes as she sat crouched in the distance.

"How do you know Mr. Gold?" the woman asked.

"Does it matter?" Bae asked. "Just leave me alone."

"I saw you catch that fish, impressive," she said. "My name is Barbra, and I just thought you'd like some of this pie I made." The woman held out her hands, revealing a container of a slice of pie.

"If you lived in the woods, you couldn't make a pie," Bae said, intelligent as ever. He made it a point to stay away from her from now on. He ran off, not taking the pie.

* * *

"Oh, you're back," Belle greeted him as he came into the house, smelling the aroma of eggs and meat. That was quite appealing. "I found your note." She looked at the clock.

"You're right on time," she noted, also seeing that his new clothing, consisting of black jeans and an emerald green T-shirt, were also quite dirty. Not that his old brown cloak was much better. Thankfully, he'd remembered to take off his tennis shoes by the front door.

"Well, I did say eight," Bae said, hesitating to go up the stairs and change. "When is my father going to be around?"

"In a few minutes," Belle said. "Would you like some breakfast?"

Bae felt a little awkward, but if she was offering...

"Sure...but only a little. I ate something already," Bae mentioned, sitting down at the kitchen table.

"Oh, well if you really don't want any-"

"No, please. I couldn't refuse that even if I wanted to." The boy smirked as she gave him a small pile of scrambled eggs and two slices of bacon. She sat with him, not eating yet and letting the bacon simmer to keep warm.

"Hmm, he's usually up by now. He likes to start the shop at eight-thirty," Belle told Baelfire. "So, you're his son. What made you come here?"

"I had a feeling he'd be here," Bae said. "Just knew I suppose. Pardon me, but I'd rather not say any more."

"Okay, I won't push you it's just...I never thought I'd be meeting you," she confessed.

"He talked about me?" Bae asked. "With...you?"

"Oh, I asked him once, but he didn't tell me really much of anything," Belle explained. "I could tell you meant a lot to him. When he said he lost you, I thought that meant you were dead."

Bae shook his head, knowing his father had a way with words. Belle and Bae talked a little more at the table, finding pleasant conversation. Baelfire liked Belle, and he thought she was the perfect girl for his father, if _she_ could even keep him in line. His father really liked Belle, he just wouldn't tell Bae it was so yet. Not that Bae thought it was the right time for such talk between them, but the intentions were perfectly obvious to him anyway.

"Ready to work today?" Rumpel's voice asked as he climbed down the stairs, glancing at the state of Bae at the moment. "...I've got plenty to do around the shop." Bae nodded, and Rumpel sat down with Belle for a few minutes to eat a decent meal as the boy ran upstairs to change into a cleaner red hooded sweatshirt with jeans.

Rumpel gave Bae a look of recognition as they walked outside. His son smelt enough like a fish, he noticed. Baelfire finally finished that tea Granny made for him, throwing the cup away before the two left. Rumpel kissed Belle's forehead, feeling he should be honest with Bae about what happened around the house before he came.

Rumpel closed the door, locking it behind him.

"You lock her in there all day?" Bae asked, as if it were cruel to do such.

"Can never be too sure, what with the Evil Queen having her power back as well," Rumpel replied. Bae wanted to inquire more about this Queen his father spoke of, but not now.

"You don't fool me Bae, you reek of fish. What were you up to this morning?" Rumpel asked.

"I work every morning. I practice with the knife, as well as many other things," Bae replied.

"Including catching fish?" Rumpel asked, though almost not so as a question. His son looked at him with a sense of warmth, which Rumpel felt instantly. It made him feel easier. At least they were talking.

When they reached the shop, Bae opened the doors, asking what his father wanted him to do first.

"You can start by organizing my office. I think you can sort out what's worth something and what is not."

Bae was hesitant to consult his father about anything, thinking that he could give this a shot without assistance, not to mention he was still resentful. Their problem wasn't going away so rudimentarily. When he got to the back, Bae couldn't help but think about how repulsive his office was. Stuff everywhere, and some kind of stench. Bae shook his head.

_No wonder he needs Belle_, he thought to himself as a joke, never to say it out loud, but it made him smile inside.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six: New Projects**

Mr. Gold really had a ton of junk in his office. The old picture frames were worthless, but Bae put them in a separate pile, thinking he could do something with them later. Any other cloth Bae saved to reuse too, thinking that if Belle had to clean the whole place, she'd need probably far more than what she already had in supplies.

With old picture frames and cloth on the side, Bae sorted through countless loose tools like nails and screws, to wood shavings which he brushed into a garbage bag along with all the other junk he found. When that was full, he tied the bag up, refilled it, and started on another. His father was in the front, doing who knows what, but Bae couldn't help but notice that the bell rang almost never.

Baelfire, after finishing a few drawers and a large corner where he retrieved a bunch of frames, went to find his father.

"Are you hungry?" was the first thing his father asked. However, he declined this offer and asked his father if he could take a break for a little while, say an hour. His father granted this, telling him to be back at the shop in _exactly_ an hour.

* * *

Bae's first stop was the house, and he brought the rags there for Belle, letting himself in with the spare key his father gave him.

"Belle, you here?" he said, entering. The girl turned to see him with a large pile of rags. "I thought you could use them for...cleaning." Belle smiled.

"Thank you Baelfire," she said, not sure what else to say. "Where did you get these?"

"The shop. Papa has me sorting through the office, and if I still know him, he can cause quite a mess. I just thought you could use more of these. I'll let you sort through them, cut them as you wish, and I'll toss the rest," Bae told her.

In his eyes, Belle saw a kindness she could never describe. This is what she thought was inside of Rumpelstiltskin, and here it was inside of his son the entire time!

"I don't know what to say. If you could please put them in my room. I'll sort through them later. Thank you, and Bae..." she said before he made his way upstairs. "Rumpel is very lucky to have you."

"I could say the same about you."

The boy ran to grab the old picture frames next, making his way to the school, thinking of no better place to store them. He thought that if he was in Storybrooke, he may as well meet the people here too.

He made his way, stumbling across the hallways. Bae couldn't even see what was beyond the picture frames there were so many, so he was never sure who was directly in front of him.

One of the frames began to tip to one side, so Bae decided to follow it, hoping it wouldn't fall off the pile. He nearly tripped over his own feet, but he hit something for but a second. Just enough to allow him to catch both his footing and shift the frame back into the pile.

Turns out, he'd just interrupted into a classroom full of children. However, Bae soon found himself unable to hold the frames anymore, there were so many! It was Snow's class of fourth graders, and they all stared at him as he nearly tripped over his feet again in surprise.

"Excuse me," Baelfire said at once. Another look and he couldn't help but ask. "Hey, aren't you Snow White?" The teacher nodded her head slowly, staring at him and wondering who he was.

"I'm sorry for barging in like this. My name is Baelfire," Bae introduced himself, setting the frames down gently onto what he hoped was an empty table. Henry's face lit up in the room and Snow saw it. Bae looked at Henry too, but he held his firm stance.

"I have a project I want to work on, and I was gonna use these, but I don't want everyone knowing about it, so if I could hide this here..."

"Yeah sure!" Henry blurted out, startling his teacher and some of the other kids. "We'll help you too if you want." The class began to rile up at Henry's statements, but Snow calmed them down, taking Bae out in the hallway, asking what the hell he was doing here, who he was, and what he wanted with those frames.

Bae explained that he wanted to make something out of them, perhaps a larger picture frame or something from wood. He told her that he was just visiting town and established recently; however, when she asked how he knew she was Snow White, Bae told her that he'd rather not talk about it for now. Either way, she was kind enough to let him store his secret project in her classroom after she found out his intention with it, thinking he could use the wood shop across the hall when the time came.

"Where did you get those?" Snow finally asked.

"The pawn shop," he answered simply, as if it were no big deal to him. "I've taken up a job with Rumpelstiltskin."

That was in itself a mystery to Snow, and she began to grow weary of this boy. Obviously, he wasn't afraid of Mr. Gold, and he knew who Mr. Gold was too. Bae reassured her he didn't have any magic, and that his intent with the frames was a surprise. One was for Ruby and Granny because he knew Granny and as a payback for the free iced tea. The other was for someone special to him.

He stayed a little while in the classroom to talk to the kids awhile so he didn't seem so strange just barging in and then disappearing, but he had to return to work 20 minutes later. Henry seemed hesitant to approach this boy, which Snow found even stranger. She was sure Henry would relate Bae to his book of fairytales, in fact, she hoped he would because then maybe she could know more about him. Henry, much to Snow's dismay, remained at a distance.

After that, Bae left plenty of time for a stop at Granny's, for he came in with money this time, and asked for that iced tea he had before. Granny whipped one up, Red watching in the background closely at Baelfire, blindly serving the person in the booth who was reading the newspaper. Bae paid for his beverage and was off again to return to work with his father. The stranger in the booth whispered to herself, sending a small aurora emit for a second within Bae's drink.

* * *

The little bell rang as he entered the shop from the front, throwing his father a look of content and then returning to work. However, his father stopped him.

"Where did you get that?" Rumpel asked, pointing to the drink in his hand.

"Granny's, like I did last time," Bae replied, setting it down near his station of work. "Why?"

"I think it's enchanted," Rumpel said outright, but Bae wasn't having this today. He sighed, shutting his eyes.

"Don't be silly Papa, you know I hate magic, and there's none in here. Please, I just want to get back to work," Bae told him.

"I don't know Bae, I think something's up. Look at that," his father pointed to the top where there was blue cream on the top of the drink.

"I told Granny I wanted whipped cream on it...the whipped cream is blue..." Bae said wearily, thinking his father was acting very strange. He took a drink of it, seeing the expression on his father's face filled with worry.

But nothing happened.

"See? It's fine," Bae reassured him, putting a hand on his father's shoulder after setting down the tea again. "I feel fine, really."

Rumpelstiltskin let him go on this, thinking that he had to trust his son when he said he was fine, and he couldn't prove there was anything wrong with the drink anyway. Granny certainly was no witch, for she would be too kind to do such a dirty deed. Mr. Gold returned to his work.

Later that evening, Mary Margaret rang the bell to enter Gold's shop.

"Ah, Snow," Rumpel said. "What can I do for you this evening?"

"Is Baelfire here?" she asked, and he was taken aback. How did she know he was here? Rumpel thought to protect his son and say no, but the boy was too quick.

"Good evening, Snow White," Bae greeted, appearing from behind the curtain.

"Baelfire, um, I just wanted to stop by and ask how long you wanted me to keep that stuff in my classroom. I forgot to ask you," she said, looking wearily towards Rumpelstiltskin.

Rumpelstiltskin looked to his son as Bae was forced to answer her. Well, that certainly wasn't what Bae wanted to happen. He thought that his father would still be feared enough that no one would come to the shop, as proven throughout the course of the day.

"Well, if you have the kids help by organizing a few things for me, then a few weeks at the most. Otherwise, I'll have it out in two months time, I promise," Bae said, then proceeding to think about Snow's schedule, just to be prepared. "Is that too long?"

"No, I was just wondering," Snow answered. "Thank you. Good day to you, Mr. Gold." She threw him a glance, one Bae knew wasn't the meaning of mutual friendship, and then she was heading out.

"Good day to you, Miss Blanchart," Rumpel said, waiting for her to leave. Bae had already made his way back to his work when his father appeared from the other side of the curtain after the bell rang.

"What was that about?" he asked, his eyes reflecting angst and perhaps a hint of anger.

"Just a project I have in mind. Snow was nice enough to let me keep some stuff in her classroom until I have the time to work on them," Bae replied, looking at his father, smiling a little. "But work here comes first."

"All right, all right," Rumpel said, unable to comprehend his son's behavior since he's returned. "You sure you don't want anything to eat?"

"I can wait until dinner," Bae replied, returning to work.

Mr. Gold saw the progress Bae was making, and it was better than he expected for the boy's first day. Rumpelstiltskin told him that he could be done for the day, complimenting that he'd never expected Bae to be so quick and efficient with his work.

Bae made sure Rumpel was okay with this, and he told his father that he'd go and find Snow at the school, for classes must just have gotten out ten minutes ago. He promised to be home for dinner, but before he left, he made sure he put his father first.

"Papa," he said, making sure Rumpel was paying attention.

"Yes Bae?" he asked, turning to face him. It was then Bae wrapped his arms around his father, bringing him in for hug.

"Thank you," he said, leaning his head in close to rest of his father's right shoulder. "I'll be home for dinner." Rumpel returned the hug, feeling something inside of him alter significantly. There was a hole far deeper than skin within him, where he left Bae, but in that moment, he felt like that hole was beginning to fill.

He wanted to hold Bae for hours and never let go, but he was forced to when Bae was pulling away.

"Papa, I gotta catch Snow," he begged. When his father let him go, Bae smiled and then left running back to the house where he grabbed his moped and was off to the school.

Regina smiled at a distance, watching Bae race through the wind towards the school. Bae tossed the empty cup of tea before he entered the school.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven: A Missing Person**

"Snow!" Bae exclaimed. "Please, show me where the wood shop is." Mary Margaret asked him what his plans were for the frames. Bae told her they were surprises once again: one for Ruby and Granny, the other was for someone else.

She smirked, shaking her head, showing Bae the machines, and Baelfire went to work straight away, knowing already how to use each one. Having jobs all around can become very useful in time. He began his surprise for Ruby and Granny first, mostly Ruby, but it could stand in the restaurant. Snow shook her head, telling Bae he worked too much, but he shrugged her off, saying he wanted to do this.

Snow thought to stick around in case Bae needed anything, but as the dinner hour approached, she popped in on him. Sitting before him was the figure of a wolf, about one foot by two feet long, made entirely out of the old frames, the scraps were on the floor around the machines he used. Her eyes stuck to the outline of the dark wooden animal. Bae was just beginning to round off the wolf's nose...

He knew she had entered.

"What do you think?" he asked her opinion, causing her to jump. "I'll clean up don't worry."

Snow stared at the wolf, speechless at his creativity.

"Where did you learn how to do that?" she asked, walking closer.

"I've had a lot of jobs in my time," Bae said. "I pick things up. It's for Red and Granny."

"That's wonderful Baelfire. I'm about to head home, so if you..."

"What time is it? Oh my gosh, I gotta get home. Dinner's on in ten minutes!" he panicked, seeing the mess before him.

Mary Margaret insisted he just go and worry about the mess for another time, but he was persistent. Snow outmatched him in a game of persistence, for Bae didn't have time to argue. He left the school, hopping on his moped and driving home, going just slightly over the speed limit.

Something, Bae couldn't see what exactly, jumped out in front of him, and although Bae tried to brake, he knew he didn't have enough time to stop. His moped swerved off to the side, along with his body, and he jumped off, rolling on his side safely. Shutting his eyes as a reflexive reaction, Bae felt himself hit the cement road, and he heard his moped take a rough landing. He thought it either a person or an animal, he couldn't tell because the figure had jolted straight out into the road so quickly.

Convincing himself in seconds that it was an animal, Bae hoped he didn't hit whatever it was, and that he could continue on home. It was getting very late. He looked up, but there was no time. Something had whacked him in the back of the head...and the last he could recall, his head hit the pavement.

* * *

"He said he'd be home right at dinner. He's never late," Rumpelstiltskin said as Belle put a roast on the table.

"Perhaps he lost track of time," Belle suggested, sitting next to him, trying to calm him from this agitation.

"No, something's wrong. I'm going after him. I want you to stay here, and no matter what, don't let anyone in. If she comes, you know what to do," Rumpelstiltskin said, leaving the table and grabbing his coat.

"Don't you think you're being a bit rational about this?" Belle suggested, resting her head to one side and raising her eyebrows slightly, giving him that look that told him to stop and think. Gold was not in the mood for that tonight, and before she could say anything else, he slammed the door behind him.

Belle sighed, cleaned up the dishes, and rushed to the window where she opened it to see him walking hastily down the road, telling him to come home in one piece. Since she wasn't about to waste the food she just prepared, she thought to fix herself a plate and wrap the rest up for later.

As Rumpelstiltskin walked along the road, those bad feelings kept piling up. He came a block from the school and found Bae's moped, on its side but without its driver.

"Bae!" he called, seeing if the machine still worked. It started just fine. "Bae!"

There was no answer, and Rumpel began to panic. He went to the school, finding it locked. He tried driving Bae's moped, but he just couldn't figure the damn thing out, so it guided it at his side.

He knocked on Snow's door within the next 20 minutes. Emma answered.

"Snow White!" he called into the house, completely surpassing Emma, and she came running.

"Where's Bae?" he asked. Emma was so confused, Snow just told her to leave them, and she did so, but never without suspicion.

"He told me he was going home. He said he was going to be a little late. Why, what happened?"

"I don't know, I was going to ask _you_," Rumpel replied, getting angry and worried at the same time. "I found his moped. Now, I think he _crashed_! You didn't see anything?" Rumpel was gaining a few inches closer

"No, I went home soon after he left. I didn't see anything," Snow shot back, leaning back a little.

"Is there a problem here?" Emma asked, seeing Snow's movement and hearing her tone against Gold.

"We may have a missing person, Sheriff Swan. I suggest you ready a search party," Mr. Gold said, staring at her with a threatening glare. Miss Swan told him it was the first thing she'd do tomorrow morning, but Rumpel sat silent, giving her a look of disapproval and disappointment.

"What you want me to do it _now_?" Emma asked with a shrug, not believing this. "We'll never find him in the dark at this hour. Wherever he is, he's probably fine."

"Sheriff, with all due respect, we need to find him as soon as possible," Mr. Gold said. "Start looking."

"Why does it matter to you so much?" Emma spat. "I'm tired! And who is this kid?" Mr. Gold was silent at that as well, not willing to give out such information.

"We look _tomorrow_," Emma said, glaring back. He knew she wasn't afraid to challenge him. "That's final. I'm not going any earlier." Mr. Gold had to accept this from her, having no other choice.

* * *

He ran back into the house after putting the moped in the driveway, finding Belle in the living room by the fireplace cutting rags out of old cloth.

"Bae's nowhere to be found, but I found his moped," Rumpel panted, nearly out of breath as he was worried about Belle's welfare as he left her alone.

"Oh!" Belle said. "I hope he's all right."

"He can handle himself, but not for long...I have to find him, Belle. I have to," Rumpelstiltskin stared into her eyes, thinking of nothing else. "Emma refuses to search until morning."

Belle begged him to wait as well, not wanting anything to happen to him because no matter how much magic he possessed, she still worried over him. Rumpel was pretty set on going out to look for Bae, no matter what she did, but Belle couldn't let him go alone, not again. She stood up suddenly, facing him with a stern look. She grasped his wrists and threw him down onto the couch, letting herself fall on top of him.

"Dearie...what are you-"

Belle came really close to his face, threatening to kiss him if he tried to escape.

"Well now, that's not very fair is it?" Mr. Gold said, almost using his magic to throw her back, but her weight above him ceased him from doing so...for various reasons.

"Please, Rumpelstiltskin," she said, still keeping close. "I know you're worried for your son. I'll help you look tomorrow, bright and early before the search party if you want me to. But tonight, you just have to wait. I know it's hard, I know you want to look as soon as possible. But listen to me, you won't find him now. It's dark, he's probably lost."

Mr. Gold shut his eyes, not wanting to hurt Belle, but Baelfire meant too much to him...

"Belle...I cannot wait," he said, using magic to lift her slowly but she forced him to put her down again when she leaned in and kissed at his neck, distracting him from the magic.

"Please, just wait. We can cover more ground together. We'll find him. I _promise_," she whispered into his ear.

Mr. Gold knew she could never keep to such a promise, but somehow, it made him feel better to hear those words. Forced to, Belle made him stay in the house, no matter how much he wanted to go out. She sat him down in front of the fire and began to rub his shoulders, feeling that everywhere in his shoulders was some sort of knot or another.

He sometimes fought her, but then she'd hit a large knot or kissed his neck, and either the shot of pain or the shot of pleasure thrusted him back down towards her.

"I told you not to move," she scolded him, and then she'd continue.

Eventually, Rumpelstiltskin gave up, not even thinking to use magic because if he did, he'd hurt Belle somehow. Never use magic when your emotions are getting the best of you, he learned that back when he thought Belle had passed away. Sure, he'd broken a bunch of glass, but the rest of the castle was a disaster by the time the curse was enacted. Thus, he didn't use his magic, and combined with Belle undoing the knot in his right shoulder, he leaned back, sighing.

She let out a soft laugh.

"See? You're okay," she told him, kissing the top of his head and then his neck. He was falling for her tonight, which was a good thing. She had to keep him distracted. He may never sleep tonight, but she would make sure he didn't leave this house.

Mr. Gold thought that this was a trick by the Evil Queen herself. Perhaps she'd figured out who Bae was, and if he left, Rumpel realized he'd be leaving Belle open for her to take again. He didn't know the strength of her power, for it'd been too long since he'd had to challenge her with magic. Torn between his own thoughts, Rumpel decided to stay at home tonight, and tomorrow, he'd look for Bae _with_ Belle, when he could see her in the daylight. When Emma and the others joined, it would give them more of a chance.

He leaned into Belle deeper until she was practically holding him up. When she finished with his shoulders, she wrapped her arms around him from behind so she could rest her hands on his stomach.

"We'll find him," she whispered, kissing the top of his head again.

"All right," was all he said before falling asleep against her as she hugged him close an hour later.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight: The Search for Baelfire part one**

Belle felt Mr. Gold stir against her, realizing she too had fallen asleep shortly after he had and she was leaning against the couch. She murmured to him words that made no sense as she opened her eyes.

Rumpelstiltskin told her to get ready quickly and that he didn't really care what she looked like. They were going to look for Bae, and Belle knew there was no stopping him now. Hell, holding him off last night was a miracle. Changing as fast as she could, Belle threw on sweatpants and her warmest hooded sweatshirt, realizing it would be cold out at seven am, despite the fact that it was closer to spring it seemed every day.

Gold locked up the house, and Belle still felt tired. Her yawning told Gold he may have rushed her, but she seemed to keep up with his stride.

"Where do you think he'd be?" she asked, letting another yawn escape as she tried to stretch her legs as she walked. It was becoming a fail though, and she was falling a bit behind each time, so she stopped altogether for a second.

Rumpel waited for her, and he wrapped an arm around her when she came close to him. Her arms were crossed as she tried to keep the heat around her, finding that Mr. Gold was much warmer than she. They looked around the forest first near where Rumpel found the moped.

"Why didn't you bring Bae's moped?" Belle asked. "Then we wouldn't have to walk. The motor is pretty quiet." Rumpel looked at Belle.

"I can't control that _thing_," Rumpel confessed, making Belle burst out a short laugh, and he thought it was kinda funny too. "Besides, I don't think it was made for the grass and the trees."

They came to the spot in the forest Bae and Rumpel had argued in, where Bae cut his palm open (that bandage, though the wound was better, probably needed to be changed too now that he thought about that), and where they finally yelled at each other for all that had happened in the past.

The yelling helped more than hurt them, or so Rumpelstiltskin thought. That way, everything was out in the open. There weren't any secrets between them, and Baelfire certainly wasn't keeping any. Whenever the situation arose, Bae told his father what he'd been up to. Rumpel found it difficult to connect with his son, though, as his manner seemed to alter since he last saw him.

Baelfire was far more independent than Rumpel remembered. He practically did everything on his own since he arrived. Other than the cut, Rumpelstiltskin rarely touched him at all. They were just starting conversation again, but he knew Baelfire was still very angry with him. Belle even suggested they go to Doctor Hopper about their issues, but Rumpelstiltskin instantly refused, recalling what August did to him. At least he knew for a fact this was Baelfire.

And then to find that this whole time, Baelfire hadn't aged a hair! It was so strange to him that, because he was the Dark One, Bae was never untouched by magic, and when the curse came and stopped all time for 28 years, his son too, still hadn't age. It seemed Bae was trapped, but now he may have started aging again, along with the rest of them. Even after he let Bae go through the vortex, he must not have aged!

He was also a lot stronger, though Rumpelstiltskin had no idea what that boy had been up to ever since he crossed the barriers of time and space to this realm. Either way, he had his son one moment, the next he didn't. That angered him more than anything else in the world. Belle at his side, she tapped him on the shoulder.

"What's that?" Belle asked, pointing to a tree branch.

There Bae's cloak was neatly hung a tree branch, and Rumpel rushed to it, not heading Belle's warnings to wait for her, seeing the trap net a little too late. He was thrown up by surprise into this large fishing net, but his magic instinctively cut through it, though his landing was rather rough.

"Are you all right?" Belle asked, helping him get up.

"I'm fine dearie," he told her, hearing the contradicting crack in his back as he stood back up. "She has him. I know she does!"

"What? Who has him?"

"Regina."

* * *

Bae felt an odd sensation inside of him. Instantly, pain shot through him, forcing him awake. There was a woman sitting across from him, that same woman who'd been stalking him since he got to Storybrooke!

His mouth was tied, so he couldn't say anything, but the woman looked far from poverty now. She was a powerful enchantress, not on the right side as the Blue Fairy would have told him. The sun was brightly shining behind him, already causing him to squint.

"Seems my little tricks are working well," she said. "Oh won't this be fun? You'll see your father in good time, child. Don't you worry." This woman must be the Evil Queen his father talked about. He wondered how she knew who he was and that Rumpelstiltskin was his father.

The pain disappeared in a few minutes, but a while later, pain shot through him again, and he grunted through the cloth between his teeth. Clenching his fist hurt for his left hand still, but he'd never let her see that. When she walked out of the room after taunting him with promising words of revenge, Bae tried to look for a way out. Immediately, he saw that she had striped him of his hunting knife, laying it on the table across from him, but he figured out he wouldn't be needing that. She may have tightened the cloth around him, but Bae used his tongue to manipulate its positioning.

Using his tongue, the cloth came off of his mouth and down to his neck. That tasted awful! His cloak was missing as well, but he was coming around as fast as he could. Wondering how much time had passed and how much his father was probably worrying, if at all, about him, Bae wasn't sure what to think about his father these days. He'd only just arrived, it'd been about two weeks and he was already in this mess! That was when he began to question what exactly his father had gotten into since he left all those years ago.

Baelfire, now that he could breathe properly, loosened the bonds at his legs by continually stretching the cloth. After a few minutes, his legs hurt, but it was well worth the trouble. He stood up, twisting his body so that he could get a better view of his hands. He had to be careful with the left one, but he only saw one big knot. A big, messy, knot.

"Great, just great," he whispered to himself.

He laid the chair down, getting himself under it by lifting its legs up with his arms from the body of the chair so that he could come right back around and undo the knot. Bae was very successful in doing this, for he was just tall enough to slip his arms down far enough on the back of the chair so that his arms that were tied could lift up the chair. The rest of his body held it after he lifted it and got under. Then, starting with the legs of the chair and stretching out, he was able to come back to the knot. Bae squirmed between the back of the chair and the floor, emerging exactly where he wanted to be.

Now, the knot was right in front of him. He undid it with his teeth. Free!

He smirked, proud of himself, and he grabbed the first weapon he saw: his knife. Now, why would she leave that out in the open like this, so simple for him to get? With it, Bae found a small window and stabbed at the glass, trying to hurry.

Hearing footsteps, Bae thought to just charge for it. He ran from the farthest part of the room, climbed up the wall a little with his feet and stabbed his entire arm through the glass, pulling himself up. The adrenaline rushed through his veins as he heard her open the door. Blood began to flow along his arm, for he was unsuccessful at yielding to the glass he was in such a rush to get out. He'd take any pain over the chance to gain.

He was gone when the Evil Queen returned, but that was exactly what she wanted.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine: The Search for Baelfire part two**

"Bae!" Rumpelstiltskin called into the air.

"Baelfire!" The rest of the search party was under way, but they were having no luck.

After a few hours of nothing, Archie had to quit, as did many others due to scheduling and their regular days. But Belle, Rumpel, Charming, and Emma still searched. Ruby couldn't even come because her grandmother forbid her to, which Emma thought was unfair. With Bae's cloak in his hand, Rumpelstiltskin never felt so helpless in his entire life. All the magic in the world, and he couldn't find his son because Regina was out there too, probably hoarding him amongst the flushed greenery.

They'd for surely get into something awful, but Rumpel used his magic for small purposes that morning.

* * *

Baelfire kept on running, hoping never to hear her voice, but then, more random pains kept shooting up his body. They came consistently now, then they would stop. Baelfire had no idea what was going on. He knew it was early morning, so he decided to rest near a large tree.

He hoped to run into his father soon, or Belle, or anyone except this Evil Queen. When he placed a hand on a branch to get back up after several pains had passed, something inside the tree shifted, and Bae heard a loud THUD come inside the trunk. This was no ordinary tree...

Bae found a hole around the other side of the tree, and after looking around to make sure no one was watching, he reached in, pulling out a large book. By the cover, Bae had seen one of these before. It was a spell book, and it was marked on a page.

Setting the book down and clearing the ancient dust, he flipped to the marked page. Reading as much as he could remember, he was able to make out the words "spell," "severe," "death by overuse," "magic," and "life energy". Although he didn't know what that meant, he studied the pictures for a few moments, seeing the ingredients were for a synthesis spell, so Bae knew it involved at least two people, usually more. Perhaps he _had_ picked up a thing or two since his father took up the practice of magic. Piecing more words together, Bae also found the numbers one and two in the spell. Only two people were affected by this.

Then he realized it! Each time someone used magic, Bae was getting weaker! His life was literally being taken from him...and he knew exactly who she attached him to.

His father, Rumpelstiltskin. Oh, how clever that was of her, and since magic was back in town, Bae didn't think anymore of the circumstances. He had to warn his father. Bae had no idea how to break this; he was too preoccupied with what could happen to him if he read the first part of it right. Well, with what he knew anyway.

Something choked him from behind.

"Not so fast," it was her voice again. She'd caught him. "What are you doing young man?" She walked over to him, picked up her spell book, then shaking Bae with her magic, wondering if he could even read any of it. The boy pretended not to know what the book said, so he remained quiet and just forged his own struggling with her.

"Didn't Rumpel teach you any manners?" the Evil Queen asked, bring him in close to her face so she could whisper in his ear. "Come on brat." Bae dangled magically in the air, finding resistance was for the most part, futile.

* * *

Belle and Rumpel were getting famished, so they decided to go back and grab a quick bite to eat. Rumpel suggested Granny's for something, and they walked into the restaurant, ordering breakfast.

"Any luck?" Ruby asked.

"Nothing," Belle replied, knowing Rumpel wasn't going to say anything.

"Hope you find the kid soon. He's working at your shop right?" Red asked.

"Yes, yes he is," Rumpel replied. It was then the two of them realized that that's all anyone knew about Bae, was that he was working for Mr. Gold, not that he was his son or anything.

It was then Mr. Gold felt ashamed, for his son couldn't even identify his own father in the town to the others. Either Bae was too ashamed of it himself or he just didn't want people to know. Either way, it hurt him a little inside, knowing that the boy was not comfortable revealing his roots in magic.

Rumpel ate rather quickly compared to Belle, but he wasn't going to rush her.

"Are you sure you won't get sick?" Belle asked. "You ate that pretty fast."

"I'm just a little nervous," he admitted in a whisper to her. She nodded, taking her time to finish her meal, taking a hold of Rumpel's hand every now and again in an attempt to comfort him.

"PAPA!" The word was faint, but it was clear as to what word it was. Rumpelstiltskin stopped cold, shushing everyone around him and Belle.

"PAPA!"

That was Bae!

"Bae," he said quickly, springing from his seat, leaving Belle behind, but she followed soon after, dropping the food.

Everyone poured out of Granny's and all around to see the sight before them on the streets of Storybrooke.

It was Regina, and held above her head by a magical force, was Baelfire. Mr. Gold gave Regina a cold gaze filled with a void: darkness, anger, and devotion. Three deadly combinations in the world of magic, especially by the Dark One.

"Put him down!" he demanded, stepping forward as no one else moved from their spots on the street.

"Try and stop me," Regina taunted, swinging the boy back and forth.

"No Papa don't it's-" Regina silenced the boy by choking him again, and that's when Rumpelstiltskin's final nerve snapped right in two.

The final battle had begun!


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten: Deathly Magic**

Regina made everyone back up, and even Emma was overpowered by such force of dark magic. Rumpelstiltskin stood twenty feet away. Things were going to get ugly.

"I'm here to make an offer Rumpel. Your son in exchange for all your power," Regina said. "Of course, that means you'd surrender it all to me."

"You'd kill me anyways," Rumpel countered. "That's not a deal, that's suicide! Come on, Regina. You should know better than this."

"Oh you can surrender it without dying. In this world, you can. All you have to do is agree to the deal, and I'll give him back," Regina said. Rumpel looked at Bae, then back to Regina.

It was not because the power had consumed him, but because Rumpelstiltskin had no other way to fight her without his magic. He could never let her have it all. He'd rather get rid of it, let it roam free, than have it be in her grasp.

"No." Rumpelstiltskin began attacking her with magic, and Bae hurled over in the air behind Regina. Her smiled widened.

"Very well, your choice."

Bae couldn't believe this! His father still wouldn't give up the power for his LIFE. It was Bae's life and all his father had to do was give up the power. Still, he could not do such a thing.

Baelfire lay hopelessly in the air, no longer caring whether he lived or died. His father was not changing, there was nothing he could do. He was alone in the world, now in the grasp of the Evil Queen. Somehow, his father still cared about him, but Bae couldn't even see why if he'd always be second to the power.

"Why are you doing this Regina? What did I do to you? I created this, I left you to be Mayor...what did I do wrong?" Rumpelstiltskin asked. "Why is he paying for this?"

"You brought her into town!" Regina shouted, pointing at Emma. "You destroyed my happiness, and now I'm going to destroy yours, well actually-"

Gold never gave her time to finished, the magic was settling in nicely. Regina's magic and Gold's magic had always felt close in power, but now both of them were rusty with it. It just depended on who was the most rusty of the two of them.

"You took my son away from me!" Regina shouted at him, but Gold just kept going, firing anything he could think of to block her light blue magic power. The dark purple simmered in his veins as he struck back at her. But no matter how many hits he made on her, she still kept coming back.

Belle watched from the sideline, seeing a building get torn apart by the Evil Queen and the streets cracked thanks to Rumpel blocking a powerful attack by Regina, which sent the pawn broker thrusting back. The smoke began to reel up from his feet as he skid back further, and he spread both of his hand out at his sides when that was over. But Baelfire, he didn't look so good. Belle stared at him, seeing him in spurts of suffering.

What was Regina doing to him?

Rumpelstiltskin's rage overcame him, but Belle couldn't help it. There was something strange about this whole thing. After Regina threw Rumpelstiltskin into a building, allowing him to crash freely, she let the boy drop, hitting the ground, seemingly unconscious.

Mr. Gold was having a problem with her, which seemed odd to him. His magic was the most powerful in all the land, there was no way she could surpass him. Sighing, Rumpel returned to his feet and had at her, but each time, she seemed to be playing more defense than offense, and she'd been the one to pick the fight. Gold ran back onto the streets, allowing for him to use shielding magic on her attacks when he did conjure them.

Attacking him was one thing, but he didn't see his son anymore high above her, and that was another. Regina must have let him down somewhere. Looking, however, was another curse for him, allowing Regina to catch enough blows to his body to send him reeling back. The pain was becoming increasingly annoying.

There was a loud growl and a low toned bark, and as Rumpel lay for a few moments to recover from the Evil Queen's magical abilities, there was a large wolf latched to Regina's arm, distracting her for an extensive period, just enough for Rumpelstiltskin to catch her by surprise.

Ruby clamped her jaws to Regina's arms, hating the sidelines. This was someone's kid, and although he worked for Rumpelstiltskin, Ruby couldn't stand to even hear what happened to Henry. She didn't want another victim to befall to a similar, more unfortunate fate.

The Evil Queen was thrown back, forcing Ruby off of her, but now she used more magic than before, now that she had to fight Ruby's family curse and Rumpelstiltskin's magic. Mainly focused on Rumpel though, she coaxed him out to use more and more magic.

* * *

Belle found that the barrier forcing back the townsfolk was lifted, not that anyone was thinking to venture out onto the field of battle. Well, no one except her. She snuck over to Baelfire, who was barely breathing.

"Come on, talk to me," Belle said, looking for any sort of reaction or mumble. Bae coughed roughly, as though he had a dry cold. The sound through his throat was horrendous, but she listened for anything she could get out of him.

"Papa..." he moaned, but Belle didn't have time to correct him. "Don't...the mag-" he reeled over in more pain, but Belle sensed his body was giving up.

"Spell...don't use..." Bae was hardly saying anything more. Belle looked up at Rumpel, and then she saw when he conjured magic. She looked to Bae, and another sigh escaped him, and his life seemed to fading right before her eyes.

Belle understood, this was some type of spell, and it seemed to be killing Baelfire whenever his father used magic! Still holding Bae, Belle lifted him off the ground, finding he was heavier than he appeared.

"Rumpelstiltskin!" she yelled into the arena of battle, trying to move Bae out of the way at the same time.

"RUMPELSTILTSKIN! Listen to me, you can't use magic!"

* * *

Ruby's energy was depleting, for her magic was not the most centered. Rumpelstiltskin appreciated her strength though. The Evil Queen and the others heard Belle screaming at Rumpel, but none of them paid any heed to her. Ruby was thrown aside, almost hitting Belle. She took the opportunity.

"Tell him, he can't use magic. It's killing Baelfire!" Belle exclaimed to Ruby.

"What?" she growled, shooting Belle a look.

"His magic, the more he uses it, the weaker Bae gets."

"How do you know?"

"Just trust me! Please," Belle pleaded. Ruby was back out onto the battle field. Being an animal, thus limiting her amount of speech, she gave the queen a large long bite in the forearm, forcing her Majesty to really fight her off. Then, she let go after blood began to drip from both of her arms.

"Rumpel," she said. "Stop. Don't use magic. It's killing the kid."

"What are you talking about?" he demanded, finding this exceedingly preposterous.

"Your magic, the more you use it, the closer to death the boy gets," Ruby said.

Rumpelstiltskin looked to see Belle holding Bae. He'd heard her screaming at him, but the Evil Queen at the moment was deriving all of his attention. She shot him a look of panic. They had no way to defend themselves. Ruby swung the Evil Queen around and around and around, and around until she finally let her jaws go, sending the witch a good 500 feet.

Emma took out her gun, ready to join Ruby in the fight. Leroy appeared with his pickax at her side. They exchanged a glance. Rumpelstiltskin didn't know what to do. Now not only did Bae hate his magic, but it was the magic that was taking his life away!

"Quick, get him to a hospital!" Emma yelled, and Ashley and Snow helped Belle in carrying the boy to the nearest hospital-the only hospital-in Storybrooke. Doc made haste.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven: Defeat**

There was no time to lose. Belle took Bae from Ashley by herself and set him on a hospital bed where someone immediately hooked him up to an IV. Bae's eyes were peacefully shut, as though he were sleeping. Doc had rushed in behind them, almost thinking he was going to run into the automatic doors, but he never did.

The commotion this caused! Although Belle saw the bright florescent lights shining throughout the room, and all the doctors running back and forth as Bae was rolled down a hallway and into a room, she couldn't help but see it all in silence. Her main attention was on Baelfire, and realizing her heart had taken a beating because of his sudden collapse because of the Evil Queen made her realize that she was ready.

She was ready to let Baelfire into her heart, as he'd always deserved. She'd been weary of him, admittedly so, but she had her reasons, considering he was the Dark One's son. Born to a man consumed by the powers of magic, Belle was surprised to find that Bae was never like that, and though she hadn't the slightest idea what happened between the boy and his father, she found that none of that mattered to her anymore.

Now was right now, and right now, Bae was in rough shape. Doc managed to barge through the bombardment of doctors. Since he was specialized in magical medicine, he knew he was the best qualified for this job. At once, Belle pushed to get into the room where Bae was lying helpless.

"I'm sorry, miss, you have to stay back," one of the doctors ordered her, but Belle merley glared and tried her luck again.

"Make me," she dared, pushing through him, and finding her way to Rumpelstiltskin's son.

It was also then she knew that no one else knew that Bae was Rumpel's son. Emma and Snow stayed back behind the glass, and only Belle bothered to push through the crowd. Concerned that they may look up her sudden action as rather strange, Belle reminded herself how much Bae meant to Rumpelstiltskin, and now he was to choose between his only son and his magic, the two very things that held him together.

Belle thought to stay beside Bae the entire time, knowing it would be best. With Rumpel out by the Evil Queen, she also figured he'd be in here as soon as he could slip away from her.

Doc shooed a bunch of the doctors out of his sight, yelling at them to leave him be with his work.

"I know what I'm doing, and you have to trust me when I say there is nothing you can do. Only _I_ can save this child," Doc explained in a sincere tone, making no one in that room question his authority.

Only keeping two doctors around for assistance, Doc told Belle she could stay as long as she liked while they tried to figure out Bae's condition.

"Thank you," she told him, watching the doctors leave, eyeing the particular one that almost prevented her from entering Bae's room. There was a new emitting resentment coming from inside of her. She found herself to be angered by that doctor.

However much she hated him, Belle shook off the feeling, not finding that doctor worth the trouble.

"It was Regina, she tied Bae and Rumpelstiltskin together. I think whenever he uses magic, Bae's health weakens," Belle warned the dwarf.

"All right, let's see what I can do then," Doc mumbled to himself, holding out his right hand and reaching into his case to pull out a light.

* * *

Back on the front, Ruby lunged at Regina again and again, despite the fact that Mr. Gold meant practically nothing to her. She'd never known him long enough to make any judgements but to stay away from him. That look in Belle's eyes as she carried Bae off is what kept her fighting. That child meant nothing to her, besides that fact that she knew that he did nothing to deserve what was becoming of him. No one deserved this. What she wondered was why Rumpelstiltskin was so concerned over this kid.

A few days ago, Ruby tried to get anything she could out of Granny, but with no luck, she thought that maybe it was ancient history, nothing more. Rumpelstiltskin must know this kid at least somewhat to want to defend him from Regina, or at the very least, he was fighting...he was fighting.

There was nothing more he could do. It was his magic killing the kid, so he'd stopped altogether. He took refuge behind Ruby, making her feel a little awkward. The Dark One, oh so powerful, reduced to this helpless man who was uncertain of himself.

"Well, this is boring," Regina taunted with her icicle eyes and frosty stare. She cared about nothing! "Come and fight Gold. What's the matter? Magic got your tongue?"

Rumpel said nothing to her, only giving her this look of pure exasperation. In his mind, she was dead, but here she was very much alive, still soulless, the definition of evil. Slow exhales released themselves in passionate force from his mouth, but then he just turned away, and soon it was clear that Rumpelstiltskin, though enraged as hell, was in fact inclined to start shedding tears.

He stood up, rising to stop all this madness...but he knew that wasn't possible. Not without the price of his son's life. Within his eyes reflected a soul, and Emma turned around to see him like this. She recognized that look: Rumpel was beaten, for some reason that she didn't fully understand. In those amber eyes, Emma saw...hurt. Real hurt.

"All right!" He shouted at her. "You've won! Congratulations, Regina, you've found a way to beat me, and I must say, you've done a damn fine job of it. There. You've found me weakness, and now..."

His head turned away for a brief moment, and he resisted the flow of his own tears, ashamed of everything: Ashamed of letting his son go, creating this curse, and simply allowing for such magic to come out of hand.

"And now you can have what you've always wanted: your bastard lover's memory to live on just because you couldn't get what you wanted! Go ahead, ravish yourself in this while you can...all magic comes with a price, and yours will catch up with you!"

"My step-mother's only reason for hatred was because of what you did to her!" Regina screamed at him, floating up into the air. Emma turned and fired a few shots at her, but although it did nothing, she found that it made her feel better. Regina could destroy even Mr. Gold's emotion, bring out the worst in a seemingly soulless man, then she was the real hell around here.

"I warned her as well!" Rumpelstiltskin replied, widening his eyes to show his rage further. "It was s_he_ who didn't listen." Rumpel turned away again. Ruby, who stood beside him, shook off her fur, letting a few sprinkles of dust hit Mr. Gold. He looked down at them, then to Ruby.

"I can't do this," he admitted in a whisper into Ruby's ear. "I have to go back to him. Here's what I want you to do..."

He fastened something around the wolf's neck, giving her his request: I vile, but nothing was in it. Tell her what to do, the wolf nodded once. From that day, Ruby questioned what she really saw in that moment...

Because she swore she saw a tear run down Rumpelstiltskin's face...and that he was in fact, just an ordinary man.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve: All the Difference**

Rumpelstiltskin stood up, still with that gaze of longing and hurt, and he pointed to Regina. Ruby growled, and he touched her fur, praying that Bae wouldn't hurt too much more for this.

The wolf felt a serge of new energy rush through her. Anything she'd sustained during battle: wounds, bruises, gashes, all of it was gone. As she brushed her tongue against her teeth, she felt her canines sharpen, sending a few drops of blood from when they hit her tongue. The magic healed that too. His magic, it would recirculate into Ruby, or so he made it that way. He didn't use the magic then, she would be...and only to heal. Gold stroked her fur only once, sending her immediately after Regina. Grumpy and Charming ran after Regina as she fled into the forest. Emma glanced at Gold, who simply nodded. She set her weapon and took off after her father, the dwarf, and the wolf. Rumpelstiltskin fled in the other direction.

* * *

"Magic huh?" Doc asked, quickly looking over the boy. "Do you know the spell?" He looked back at Belle, but she shook her head.

"No, I'm sorry," she replied. "I don't even know what book it comes from."

Doc forced a smile, knowing she was doing all she possibly could to help this boy. Belle told Doc the boy's name but nothing more, wanting the secret of Rumpelstiltskin's son to remain so unless he wished otherwise, or he just didn't care anymore.

"Test him," Doc said then as he looked at Bae.

"For what?" a doctor asked, staring at the dwarf quizzically.

"Anything. Everything," Doc commanded. "Take his blood, take a hair follicle I don't care. We have to find out what's in his system. However you people do it these days, but without moving him into a different room and putting anything into his body. Don't want to interrupt what's already inside, now do we?"

"Yes Sir," they replied in unison. Doc analyzed what they each did, taking needles and drawing Bae's blood, putting him on oxygen, the works for him.

The doctors ran out of the room with all the samples they needed from the boy to test him for as much as possible in quick time. A silence issued among them as the doctors left. The room felt empty, just Doc and Belle were inside. Snow watched from the glass, thinking about Henry. Almost the exact same happened to him! And now, whoever this boy was, his magic was tied to Rumpelstiltskin's...and that made her lose hope for the boy.

Gold would never give up his magic, not for anything. It gave him too much power, too much leverage over others. His ruthlessness seemed to never end, so why should it stop now?

Doc checked for a pulse, finding his breath very shallow, but his heart still faintly beating, though Doc didn't know for how much longer. Belle stood over him, touching his soft hair that felt extremely hot. Reeling back a little, she warned Doc, who merely passed this on as nothing.

"That'll keep the kids busy...Belle, many spells have heat effects on the victim," he informed her. "It's really no much to go on, much less a cure."

She sighed, pulling up a chair, setting herself down and staring at Bae. The heart rate monitor suddenly dropped from 52 to 45, causing Belle to jump at the slower sound. Doc glanced up at it.

"He must've used more magic..." Doc said, making Belle's eyes swell up with tears. How could he do this to his own son? His decisions angered her, but there was nothing she could do.

"It's killing him..." Belle obviously stated, though she was just beginning to accept the truth. Bae was slowly dying. More of his heart rate dropped, now it was down to 37. Doc saw the look in Belle's eyes, and he was compelled to ask...

"Is he yours?" Doc asked, causing her to look up suddenly. She shook her head, looking back down to the floor, and in that moment, Belle found that she wished otherwise. Doc was slightly confound at Belle's emotion; however, he wasn't one to press her on the matter.

Instead, Doc began to press on Bae's chest, not knowing what else to do and his heart rate was dropping.

"Hey Doc," Bashful said, walking in cautiously. "W-w-w-would this h-h-help any?"

In that dwarf's hands was a old medicine book! Doc ran and took it at once, thanking Bashful for it, wondering where he got it. The dwarf said he found it in one of the old shelves inside the house.

Doc set it on his lap as he sat down. Belle peered over his shoulder, seeing that the book was in an old language, perhaps Latin.

"You can read that?" Belle asked. "It's certainly isn't English."

"Old English? No, it is not that, it's Latin my dear," Doc said, reading as fast as he could through the pages, matching what little they knew about Bae's condition. "Grab a piece of paper and tare it up into smaller piece will you please?"

Belle did as he requested, and whenever Doc needed one, he held out his hand.

* * *

"What's happening?" the voice of the imp came as he turned the corner into Bae's room, practically sliding across the floor. "Bae!" He came to the bedside at once, grasping the side with a fierce force. Doc glanced up, making sure he didn't do anything reckless.

Belle stood up straight and walking over to Rumpel, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"It's all right, Doc is doing everything he can," Belle said. Rumpel turned to the dwarf, who was flipping through the book as fast as he could translate.

"Well?" he asked, and Doc looked up. "what's wrong with him?"

"If I knew, I'd be doing something," Doc said, a little annoyed, glancing back at the book. "What do you care anyway?"

Mr. Gold looked to Belle, the sense of knowing reflecting within his eyes only she could recognize. Perhaps it was the right time to tell them all. Bae's heart rate dropped once more, causing Gold's eyes to widen.

"I didn't even _use_ magic!" he exclaimed.

"Did you put any healing spells on anyone? Because if you did, then that will hurt him," Doc said.

"It's no longer mine if the magic flows through someone else!" Rumpelstiltskin shot back, but Doc merely shook his head.

"You enacted it."

"It's hers now!"

"You gave her a healing spell in which your magic is completely transferred? No longer connected to you?" Doc asked, obviously skeptical.

"Yes!"

"That's impossible!"

Gold came closer to Doc, giving him an eye filled with emptiness and hatred.

"I'm the Dark One, nothing is impossible for me. Now get to work!" Rumpel commanded ominously.

Belle stepped in.

"This isn't helping," she said as she pulled Rumpel away from Doc by the wrist so he could focus.

"Fine," Doc said, standing. He gave the book to Rumpelstiltskin. "You read this. The boy has a high temperature, heart rate decreasing, and is still not ready for anything stronger than a drop of Siegbarste Gift."

Doc went over to the child, pressing on his chest multiple times as Rumpelstiltskin glanced through the pages, hating having to do this the long way. Magic could be so useful. If Bae's eyes were open right now, he'd be begging him never to use magic again. Not that Rumpel blamed him by any means, this was literally killing him. This entire time, the Evil Queen let him kill his own son, and all she had to do was rile him up.

"You know, Rumpel," Doc said, taking a break from pressing. "Why do you honestly care so much? You never cared about anyone else, all of a sudden a boy is going to die because of your magic...you did that all the time, what makes this one any different?"

Now Doc was either picking the fight or sincerely curious, Belle couldn't tell, but Mr. Gold decided not to fight back. Not when Bae was in that hospital bed, and Doc was only trying everything he could to help. He tried to look for any other signs indicating the type of spell Regina had used.

"Because...he's my son...he's my only son."


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen: A Father's Love**

Doc's eyes widened as he looked to the child, then to Rumpelstiltskin, seeing some similarities, though he'd have never expected Baelfire to be his son! The doctor sighed, now understanding the situation to an enlightened extent.

"Just don't use any more magic," Doc said. "It'll only make it worse. Let me do my job." Belle took tight hold of Rumpel's hand, leading him to sit down in the chair she'd pulled up while she stood beside Bae.

Doc continued to press on Bae's chest, finding that the boy's heart rate still dropped. His chest was barely moving. Doc sighed, getting an idea, at least until the test results came back.

The dwarf loomed over Bae, taking the oxygen off of him, thinking it wasn't oxygen Bae needed...

He held Bae's nose, and began to release carbon dioxide into the boy's mouth. Rumpel nearly passed out, feeling awkward and a little freaked out that Doc would try such an extreme, not to mention desperate, attempt to save Bae. Belle wondered why Doc was doing all of this, despite knowing that Bae was Rumpelstiltskin's son. Rumpel was not the most well liked person, probably second to last from Regina. Perhaps Belle was not the only one to care for a beast.

To distract Rumpel, she brought Doc's book over to him, and he glanced through more pages, not finding anything that could match Bae's condition, nothing even in the parts of the book which requested much stronger substances and mixtures.

A doctor came scrambling into the room, and Doc turned from giving Bae CPR.

"Well?" Doc asked, waiting impatiently for the doctor to catch his breath.

"No traces-of poison," the doctor panted, his hands on his knees. He looked up at Doc. "Nothing abnormal in his system-just a-just a failing heart and lungs it seems. Nothing in his blood."

Doc turned back, and Rumpelstiltskin was angered but he hadn't the strength to stand up and shake that doctor to his death. However, Doc wouldn't give up on the boy, and Rumpelstiltskin watched as Doc preformed CPR, still, on the boy.

The room grew silence again, but Bae's heart rate fell slowly on the machine, and Rumpel stared frantically at each page, but there was just nothing there...nothing that matched Bae's condition. They needed HER book to figure out how to reverse the hold between him and his son.

"There's nothing more I can do," Doc confessed. "Not without knowing what it is. There are no signs of anything!" He released his mouth from Bae's. The boy's heart fell further, and his chest heaved up, making it appear as though he was sighing.

In the next moment, he exhaled painfully slow, resting his head down against the pillow completely relaxed.

Bae's pulse flattened.

"NO!" Rumpelstiltskin shouted, dropping the book to the ground, sending a loud THUMP through the air, but he didn't care. He shook Bae over and over.

"NO! Bae, Son...speak to me. Bae!" Rumpel shouted. Doc and Belle stood on either side of the bed, watching as Rumpelstiltskin loomed over his son. Snow felt a tear in her eyes, remembering that Emma was in this exact position just months ago, and that Rumpelstiltskin has a son!

Well, he had a son.

Belle was afraid to touch Rumpel, fearing that he'd cast her aside in an instant and not give a care in the world about how much force he used against her. Tears came to her eyes too, because for those few weeks Bae stayed with them, she began to think of Bae a little as her own, though she never had one herself ever. There was something about him: perhaps his kindness, or his generosity, or maybe it was that innocent look on his face whenever he came into the house for a break from Mr. Gold's shop for an hour, but he stuck with her. She hadn't realized how much she actually cared for an almost complete stranger until she saw the line flatten on the machine, and the helplessness Rumpelstiltskin must be feeling as he desperately shook his son.

Imagine, after having him for such a short time, only to watch him die before his eyes... that was just tragic to Belle.

"Bae, I'm not letting you go. I won't let you do this," Rumpel said, staring down at the boy. "I won't let you die. I will _never_ let go again, you hear me? I know you're in there Bae. Bae!"

"I'm sorry Rumpelstiltskin," Doc said gently, a melancholy gaze in his eyes. "But there's just nothing more we can do."

Mr. Gold then began to push on Bae's chest as Doc had before, when Bae actually had a pulse. Belle felt even worse, while Doc shook his head slowly, backing away. The boy was dead to him, so Rumpel's efforts seemed that of one desperate soul. The dwarf let him be, thinking it best to just exit the room altogether.

Gold even pressed his mouth to Bae's a few times, but then he began to feel odd again. Something about performing mouth-to-mouth, even if it was his own son, did not sit well with him. Belle couldn't watch this anymore, and when she looked the other way, she saw Snow White behind the glass, looking towards them with sympathy. Snow waved to Belle, knowing that she felt a heavy sense of loss. Doc left the room after picking up his book.

Out in the hall, the dwarf spoke to Snow.

"He's suffering a great loss. I didn't know he had a son," Doc said.

"Yeah, didn't see that coming," Snow replied. "Reminds me of Henry actually. I know Emma was there for Henry...she broke the curse by telling Henry she loved him and then kissing him. Hey! Do you think that would work with this?"

Doc looked away for a moment, pondering the scenario.

"I doubt it." Snow slouched back a little, having no more ideas about what they could do for Bae.

"Doc?" she asked. "I know Rumpelstiltskin isn't the most popular man around. What made you help Baelfire?"

Doc smirked. "It's not Bae's fault his father has magic. We can't pick family, but we can make decisions, Snow. I chose to help Baelfire because no one deserves death at his age, no matter what the circumstances."

He then decided to join the other doctors, glancing at the book for future reference, Baelfire in his mind. Snow looked back through the glass to see Belle cautiously approaching Rumpel.

"Just use it," Belle told him.

"What?" Rumpel asked, not believing what he was hearing, especially coming from _her_ mouth.

"He's gone, so the spell must've worn off," Belle was trying to be reasonable, but tears were coming fast as she spoke. "Can't you do something?"

"Magic can do much, but not that!" Rumpel told her. "There's nothing about resurrection. What's dead-is dead...besides, Bae always hated magic."

Belle gave up, not knowing what else to do, and all that she could hear was that constant drone of the machine reminding her that Bae was really dead. She pulled up another chair, sitting to think.

Rumpelstiltskin stared at his son, placing a hand on the boy's head. Magic was the thing that got him into this mess. This entire mess: the Evil Queen, Storybrooke, all of it. To use it again on Baelfire to try and bring him back was a fool's errand, even he could see such a fact at this moment. There were some things magic could not provide, and life certainly was one of them.

"Bae," he said. "I know I haven't been the best father for you, with what I've done to you. I let you go...and I never should have. Ever since that day, I'd-I'd walk every evening, thinking that I would find you someday, somewhere in the forrest. But I never did. I created the curse so I could find you, because that was the only way to find you. If your mother would have been there, she'd have put me in my place, that's for sure..."

Rumpel smirked at the memory.

"But what's done is done. Now I know you never liked magic, and I could never understand why...until I realized after I-I realized what you meant, that we were better off in a place without magic. Both of us. You didn't find me to spend a few months with me and then die, Bae. That's not why you came! I never lost sight of my goal to find you, never. I even hurt a few souls along the way..."

He looked at Belle who simply returned the gaze. "But I didn't want to lose sight of what really mattered. You have every right to be mad, to give up, to die, but please, for my sake son, you can't die. I didn't put in all this work just to let you go again!

"I remember when you told me that all you wanted was to be with me. I told you I could conjure anything you desire, but you wanted something no amount magic could bring you. I picked the power once, now...now I choose you.

"If there's one thing you've shown me, Bae, it's never to run...and you're right, you've always been right. I shouldn't have run. To-Today-" Rumpelstiltskin found tears running down his face. "Today I'm not running!"

One last time, Rumpel found the courage to breathe for his son again, hoping this would be the one that woke Bae up. His hands began to shake precariously.

"Bae, I'm making you a deal. I will not give up, but you have to promise to fight...fight Bae! I'm meeting you in the middle...I'll be here when you wake up, right beside you, and I will never leave you again! Baelfire! By the gods open your eyes. Open your eyes so I can see you, so that I can tell you how much you mean to me. Open your eyes so you can listen so I can tell you-" another tear...but just one.

"-so I can I tell you how much I've always loved you."

Rumpelstiltskin took a hold of Bae's right hand, squeezing it perhaps a little too tightly, and as a tear of his hit Bae's face, he kissed his son on the forehead.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter Fourteen: AHA!**

Rumpelstiltskin was not sure if the exhale after his little speech to Bae, or rather more to himself, was supposed to feel like a large weight had just left his chest. Shutting his eyes abruptly, he ceased the flow of tears, instead feeling like the wind had just been knocked out of him. He grasped the side of Bae's hospital bed, breathing slowly for a few moments.

There was something wrong, and Rumpelstiltskin could feel it. Inside of him, he felt something die. Baelfire was not responding to anything, and Rumpel hadn't used any magic, he simply prayed that his words were good enough. They were all he had left to offer.

Belle put her hands on his shoulders, asking him if he felt okay.

"I'm fine," he lied, turning to her, pulling her into him. She needed the hug too. Snow wiped her eyes at the sight of Bae, and Doc joined her side.

"I should probably go in and disconnect him," Doc told her, but she held him for a moment.

"Let them be for a few moments," she begged him, and Doc figured he could give them a few moments. But he knew that the longer they waited, the harder it would become to let the kid go.

* * *

A cry of agony swept through the air like dust. Ruby was in some serious trouble. Emma fired her weapon at Regina, but the bullets, as with the dragon Malificent, seemed to do nothing. What is with magic and repelling bullets? It was quite annoying. Ruby was getting weak; at least, her energy was depleting. The wounds took there time healing but they did eventually. This was lasting far too long.

Charming took his sword, trying to get in close, which he managed when Emma wasn't being thrown at him. She'd hit the ground near him, but Ruby bounced back just enough so James had a shot at getting close to her. Regina summoned a staff, an icy light fog flowing over the top of it. That was her weapon against him.

They fought for a while, the whole game seeming like a fencing match. Ruby dragged her body towards Emma.

"Here," Red said, offering Emma the vile around her neck. "I need you to take this to Gold."

"What is it?" Emma asked, though she had a pretty good guess.

"It's Regina's blood. Hurry, and please don't drop it."

"Why should I leave you?" Emma asked in offense.

"Well, no offense to you, but you're really not helping here. Your gun is worthless and you have no other weapon," Ruby mentioned. Emma couldn't believe this, but she knew it to be true.

Grumpy was trying to get behind Regina to stab her with his pickax as Charming over there was backing her up. It was useless, and Grumpy knew better than to throw the ax. She rose herself high in the air, and Emma took the vile from Ruby's neck, feeling that her wounds were actually slowly healing.

Now what? Regina was high in the air!

Emma watched, placing the vile in her pocket and pulling her gun again. Ruby couldn't jump that high and Charming or Grumpy weren't going to throw their weapons, so what could they possibly-

"AHRGH!" Regina shouted, hitting the ground with a loud THUMP. Ruby wasted no time, her animal instinct led her to attack Regina by the throat. Grumpy looked in the trees around them.

"HAHAHA HA! Take that, witchy!" It was Dopey, shouting from the sidelines. Grumpy rose one of his eyebrows as he attention averted back to Ruby. How did Dopey manage that one? Of course, then he had to give away his position by shouting at the top of his lungs.

James went to the Evil Queen, holding her by the throat after Ruby let go, and put his sword to her back.

"Give him seven, no eight, good reasons why he shouldn't run you through!" Grumpy yelled.

Regina just laughed, and Emma found this the perfect opportunity to slip away, so she ran, never looking back. The Evil Queen used her dark magic to throw James off of her and when Ruby tried again, she threw the wolf back, but Grumpy was quicker this time around.

The pickax was thrusted up, and she didn't move out of the way to be completely unharmed. The dwarf left a gash in her side, but Ruby was too tired to strike again, and James just couldn't get leverage over her to pierce her heart and kill her. She slipped away, again...

Clearly, this wasn't working.

* * *

Doc thought he'd given the two long enough, and the difficult yet undeniable question had to come out now. The dwarf entered the room, and Rumpelstiltskin released Belle, both of them still in obvious distressed.

"Mr. Gold, I hate having to ask this, but apparently it's procedure these days," Doc said. "I need your permission to pull the plug, so to speak. I'll disconnect Bae from oxygen and the IV."

Rumpelstiltskin didn't say anything for a few moments, but he was going to refuse this. He'd just promised Bae he wouldn't let him go.

"No, not yet," he said, and as much as Doc disapproved of his decision, he stood back.

Rumpel looked at his son, and what followed nearly made Doc have a heart attack.

There was a beep...and another, and then another. Belle and Rumpel's heads jerked up, seeing what was on the machine. Bae...

Baelfire was breathing!

"Oh my gods!" Doc said, startled at the first beep, and then staring at the monitor. "Impossible."

Belle's eyes widened, a smile came to Rumpelstiltskin's face, and he ran to the edge of the bed.

"Be careful!" Belle warned, holding out a hand as if to stop him.

"Bae!" Rumpel said in a quiet voice, collapsing into a chair out of shock. A smile came upon Doc's face, as a scientist's would the moment he realized he could prove his theory, and then a loud, single laugh escaped his lips.

"Ha...AHA!" Doc exclaimed, unable to hold his excitement. "He's alive!"

Snow lifted her head as soon as Doc shouted with glee and thanks into the air, finding his words to be nothing but true. Bae's heart was beating again, and his lungs began to function as normal.

Belle went to Rumpelstiltskin's side, smiling at the sight of the boy actually breathing again, but her wave of relief was nothing compared to the monstrosity of his emotion.

Quickly, Bae's heart rate jumped to 89, making them all excited. Doc ran out of the room, saying the kid was alive, which made everyone in the hospital relieved that he was okay. Katherine, Happy, Bashful, Sneezy, Sleepy, Granny, Ashley, and Jefferson talked amongst themselves. Snow went back to the group, explaining that the child in that room was Rumpelstiltskin's son.

"He had a child with Belle?" Jefferson asked.

"No, he's not Belle's," Snow replied. "But that boy _is_ Rumpelstiltskin's son..."

At that, people began to talk quietly again, but Snow made sure to tell them that Rumpel was just like the rest of them, though some of them weren't buying that statement at all. A few nuns just walked in, ready to hear the latest gossip around...rather, the latest truth.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter Fifteen: It's Gone**

"Where's Gold?" Emma burst through the doors of the hospital, knowing this is where everyone probably was. Everyone turned to see her.

"In there," Snow pointed, but then she stopped Emma. "He's in shock, though. Better wait whatever business you have with him."

"I can't, this is important. Ruby said to deliver this to him," Emma retracted the vile from her pocket, revealing Regina's blood, a fair amount of it. Happy fainted at the sight, for he got woozy at blood.

Snow refrained her daughter still, telling her that it could wait. Emma grew nervous with every passing hour, going to Snow repeatedly like a child to ask her if she could enter the room yet. Snow talked to Doc, and she told Emma that Bae still hadn't woken up yet. Emma convinced Snow to let her in for the few minutes it would take her just to give the vile to Gold.

She sighed, and Doc let Emma through. To her greatest surprise, she found Belle with him and then she saw the kid laying in the bed, as Henry had at one point. She'd heard about the miracle that Bae's heart began to beat again and from being flat! Doc had seen it himself, yet still he sat in the lobby with a few others, flipping through his medical book of ancient practices, wondering if there was still a way Bae could be alive and what to do about this enchantment on Rumpel's child.

"Gold," Emma said, catching their attention lightly. Then she looked at the boy. "I didn't know you had a son...Regina's a first class bitch isn't she?"

"More than you know, Miss Swan, now what can I do for you?" Rumpelstiltskin asked.

"Hey, I've stood where you are now. I know what that's like...and from what I hear it's been a miracle for you too..." she said, but Gold didn't say anything.

"Anyway...Ruby sent me," she held out the vile. Rumpelstiltskin took it cautiously, which was a new sight for Emma.

"Thank you, Miss Swan," he quietly spoke. "You can go now." With that, Emma walked out, knowing something made him change within the past few hours. Having your child on a deathbed can do that to a person, or so she came to realize.

Instantly feeling better that her errand was complete, Emma wondered if she should go back to help the others, but Jefferson cut in, telling her it was not a good idea.

"I'll take your place," he offered. "I have magic...well, to an extent. I'll be of more help...if I may."

He bowed to her, and that's when she was reminded of her place in this town. She allowed him to go, and Snow smiled, glad Emma would stay behind. Jefferson made way to the battlefield after asking which way everyone had gone.

* * *

Regina held Dopey and Grumpy to the ground, and Dopey hadn't landed very well from the tree when she threw him down. Afraid he may have broken something, Ruby once more tried to latch her jaws, but her efforts failed in vein, for she was thrusted against a tree and was dropped instantly. She was dead weight to Regina.

James, in a desperate attempt, ruthlessly threw his sword, but Regina was tiring of him and his games. She decided to kill him, sending the sword straight back at him. Charming shut his eyes, but nothing ever hit him. Only a swift breeze.

Rather, it was Regina who was slashed by the sword. Somehow, the sword had swung back around to hit her instead of David. At first, he thought Rumpelstiltskin had returned to join the fight.

"Sounds like you've gotten into a little turmoil Prince James," another voice called. The hat placed atop his head once again, Jefferson stood tall, ready to fight magic with magic. It was his hat that swung like a boomerang, catching the sword and letting it out on the other end.

He smirked, waving his hand and twiddling his fingers at Regina. Then, he set the hat down and watched it spin, and out of it came a storm of porcelain teapots and teacups and plates. Jefferson smiled and began to laugh insanely as Regina struggled to repel the dishes. Grumpy and Dopey squirmed out of her clutch, but it was clear Dopey was hurt. His leg hadn't been feeling the same, and he immediately collapsed.

At the sight of Jefferson, Regina knew she was overwhelmed and outmatched for now. With Bae gone and Rumpelstiltskin not using magic, she soon realized that her plans were failing, and that this was biding all the rest of them. She fled the scene, farther and this time, uncatchable. Jefferson ceased the hat.

"She's gone," Grumpy said.

"Yeah, but who knows for how long," David said. "Come on, let's go back."

Dopey stared at Grumpy, not saying anything but something was obviously wrong.

"Aw Dope, what'd you do?" Grumpy asked. The dwarf pointed to his leg and whimpered.

"Hey Rube," Grumpy said. "Would you mind carrying Dopey here? Think he broke his leg." Ruby nodded weakly and she lay on her stomach as Dopey hopped onto her back, leaving his leg limp. The little man looked like he was ready cry out in pain. Grumpy warned her to be extra careful. Ruby had to walk slowly anyway, what with all her aches and pains, sluggishly being healed by the magic Rumpelstiltskin had given her.

Seriously, they needed to get out of the forrest. Jefferson led the way, and Grumpy took the rear, making sure James was all right next to Ruby and Dopey.

"He looks really hurt. Doesn't he ever say anything?" James asked, looking back to Grumpy.

"Eh, don't usually hear him say a whole lot," Grumpy replied as he trudged along. James turned back around, while Jefferson looked around cautiously. The sun was going down.

"I'm afraid she's gone to get more magic. More powerful magic," he told them. "That's why she fled I'm pretty sure. We'll need a better plan than that back there."

"Rumpel sent me on an errand. I had to collect Regina's blood. I sent it back with Emma," Ruby explained. "What do you make of that?"

"Can't say, but I know that his son's just come around, so he's probably not concerned about _that_ right now," the hatter said.

"Rumpel has a kid?" Ruby asked in surprise, nearly stopping, but Grumpy pressed her on.

"Hey whoa whoa, when?" Grumpy asked.

"Apparently the matters are from a long time ago. The kid's back, and they got into some kinda fight I think. Well, thanks to Regina, he's in the hospital but has jus' started to come around," Jefferson explained.

Everyone there was surprised by the mad hatter's words. Rumpelstiltskin sounded like them, and with much less power than before!

* * *

That evening, Bae still hadn't woken up yet. Rumpel told Belle he was going to stay here all night if he had to, and he'd asked her to join him. She accepted, knowing that she wouldn't hear the end of it if she refused.

"Is there anything you want me to get back at the house?" she asked, standing. He shook his head.

"No, just stay here...with me, please," he told her and she gladly abided. Mostly, they watched Bae, and some people cautiously went back to their homes, but Granny and the dwarves stuck around, awaiting their loved ones' return.

"Well, all right," she replied as she sat in the chair next to him.

She folded her hands, but Rumpelstiltskin reached for one, causing her to break them up. His eyes were latched onto his son the entire time. So much so that Belle wondered if he would even fall asleep tonight.

Doc popped in on them, wondering how Bae was. His heart rate was up to 91, so that was very good. There seemed to be no other complications. Belle asked Doc if he thought the spell was gone from Bae. All of his tests seemed to think that was the case, but he still hadn't any answer as to what exactly the spell was.

"I don't know how it was suddenly cured either," Doc said, still confound with this conundrum. He checked himself out of the room, passing Emma on his way out. She cleared her throat.

"I was gonna head out, wondered if you guys wanted anything to eat," she offered, holding out a few donuts. Belle gently declined, but Rumpel accepted, though he didn't expect her to just leave the entire box with them! She went home with Snow, asking what he wanted with the vile.

"Oh just a little something I needed to conjure," Mr. Gold replied, and that seemed to be all she was getting out of _him_ tonight.

Thus the two were left alone with Baelfire.

"He looks like an angel," Belle said. "Looks peaceful, like he's dreaming." Rumpelstiltskin gave her an odd look, never guessing that she'd say something of that nature tonight.

She continued to watch him for a little while, but then she got thirsty. Rumpel rose from the chair and sat next to Bae on the bed, stroking his hair again as she found he liked to do.

"Umm, I'm going to get a glass of water," Belle whispered to him, but as she was about to turn around he turned back to her.

"Dearie, I can get one for you," he said, looking at Bae. "It'll be quick. Besides, I'd rather you stay here...I'm sorry Bae." Rumpelstiltskin tried to conjure up a glass with water in it for Belle, afraid that if she left, he'd suddenly lose it.

Well, Belle stared at him for a few moments, but there was nothing. There was no purple emitting from his hands, and no glass appeared in her hands or his. Rumpelstiltskin opened his eyes after concentrating for a moment. He sighed, but Belle noticed he wasn't too surprised at this reaction.

"Rumpelstiltskin, what's wrong?" Belle asked. He smirked, looking at her with weakened eyes.

"I-I have no magic," he simply stated. "It's gone."

"What?" Belle whispered sharply. "How?"

"I felt this odd sensation after I took that last breath for Bae...and then his pulse returned. Starting to think my magic was a price for his life," he whispered.

"So resurrection was possible? He was actually dead?" Belle asked, her eyes wide.

"It's what I'm starting to think," he said, looking down onto the white sheets. "Well, you said you were thirsty?"

Belle nodded, so she left to get a glass of water and she returned with two, just in case he changed his mind. When she came back, she found him staring at Baelfire, now lying next to him, with one arm wrapped around the boy. She smiled a little, knowing he cared so deeply for Baelfire.

As quietly as she could, Belle set the glasses on the table next to Bae's bed, offering a smile towards Rumpel, but she could sense something was wrong. Well, he did just lose his magic again...

"I'm sorry about the magic," Belle whispered. "But you saved your son...that's more important right?"

Rumpel lay silent next to Bae, and Belle sat back into the chair, watch him lay with Bae.

"Belle..." he said softly. "Tell me...are you all right, you know, with my magic no longer in my possession?"

Belle gazed at him confused, finding herself a bit lost in his eyes for a moment, for she was engulfed by his passion.

"Hmm?" she asked, processing what he'd just said. "I'm sorry, I don't quite understand what you mean."

Mr. Gold sighed, trying again.

"It is okay with you that my power no longer exists?" It was then Belle understood what exactly he was asking her. He wanted to know if she still felt the same way about him, even though he could no longer make everything she wanted appear right before her eyes.

"Yes," Belle said, grinning with a glisten in her eyes at the fact that he'd even asked that question. "Yes, of course. I love you."

He needed to hear that from her, and she sat on the bedside near his feet.

"Besides," she said. "Now that you don't have your magic...we can kiss properly." She smiled at that thought, and she saw one also creeping its way along the corners of his mouth too.

"How very true."


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter Sixteen: So it Seems**

Belle told Mr. Gold she was going to try and get some sleep, and she explained she would be on the couch in the waiting room if he wanted to find her. Belle did not want to sleep in a chair, and the waiting room wasn't too far away. Emma and the others had already gone home for the night.

The doors to the hospital opened, and in came Jefferson, Ruby, Dopey, Grumpy, and David. Doc was still awake, siting in the chair behind the desk. He stood up at the sight of Ruby and Dopey.

"Oh my," Doc said, walking with haste towards Dopey. "What happened?"

"That Queen sent him to the ground. We think he broke his leg," Grumpy replied. Doc had Ruby carry the dwarf a little farther into the room next to Baelfire.

Whenever something barely hit Dopey's leg, he struggled in pain and he whimpered. Doc sorrowfully looked at him, nodding his head. After confirming his injury, Doc sent another doctor on the late night shift to help straighten Dopey's leg and put it into a cast. Doc held Dopey's hand as the doctor did his work. Though the dwarf's leg hurt terribly, once it was set, everything was just fine. He clutched to Doc for a few more minutes, and that's when he spotted Belle making herself comfortable on the couch.

Cautiously, Doc made Dopey release him as he made his way out of the room.

"How's Bae?" Doc asked. Belle looked up with a tired gaze in her eyes.

"The same..." she sighed. "I wish I could do more, but I can't."

"Well, I'm sure you're helping him somehow," Doc said. "Why are you out here?"

"I'm tired. I just wanted to sleep out here. I don't really belong in there. Bae isn't my child."

"So?" Doc asked, shooing her off the couch. "Go on, don't be nervous. Go in there by him. You're all he's got if Bae is not awake."

Belle sighed, thinking the old dwarf might be right, so she took a blanket with her into Baelfire's room, sitting into a chair and wrapping herself up, yawning. Rumpelstiltskin watched her as she drifted in and out of sleep.

"Papa?" a faint voice stirred, causing him to turn instantly to see his son's eyes peaking open as if it was the early morning.

"Bae," Rumpel said, making Belle's eyes open more. "Bae..." He stroked his son's hair as the boy began to open his eyes wider, and he looked around the dark room, seeing only his father, Belle, and the lamp that lit the room. As he blinked, behind the glass came more into focus, where he saw a little dwarf being wheeled around.

"What happened?" Bae asked, looking at the dwarf the entire time.

"I don't know Bae...I wish I did," Rumpel said, his eyes filling up with tears as he held his son against him. Baelfire recognized that smell.

"That poor dwarf," Bae said, and that's when Belle opened her eyes and saw Dopey in a wheelchair. Doc came into the room, seeing Baelfire was awake...and perhaps Belle.

"How are you Baelfire?" Doc asked. "My name is Doc. You suffered quite a bit today, but you can rest now."

"Who's that?" Bae asked, looking outside.

"That's Dopey," Doc said. "He broke his leg."

"Oh, how?" Bae asked. Doc was shocked that all the boy could think about was Dopey when he himself had just been in the Evil Queen's grasp himself for hours.

"He was fighting Regina," Doc explained. Then a loud growl was heard along with a howl and a few barks, startling everyone in the room. Doc announced that he should leave and attend to Ruby.

Rumpel could see that Baelfire was confused, and Belle sat up on the bed with him.

"Bae, it's all right," Belle said. "Regina just put a spell on you, but we fixed it."

"You did?" Bae asked, looking at his father. Rumpel nodded, a sad look upon his face. "What's wrong, Papa? Did I miss something?"

Belle looked at Rumpelstiltskin, encouraging him to tell his son what happened to him. However, he couldn't and as soon as Belle saw that, she thought to cover for him...for now.

"Well, you told me that it was magic that was killing you, and by the time I got you to the hospital, Doc was already figuring things out. Regina kept you to get revenge on your father for whatever reason," Belle looked to Rumpelstiltskin.

"Probably Henry," Mr. Gold replied. "But he's a long story, Bae. You're safe now, and I'm never gonna let you go again."

Baelfire grasped his father into a hug, asking what Belle meant when she said they could 'kiss properly.' Belle smirked and looked at the floor, a little embarrassed that he'd heard that. She explained that there was something that had changed within his father...

"Papa..." Bae was waiting for him to tell the tale.

"Son...I no longer have any magic," Rumpelstiltskin confessed. Bae's eyes widened.

"What?" he gasped. "How is that possible?" He looked at Belle, who simply nodded, then back to his father. He didn't believe this.

"When I told you how much you meant to me, I gave up the magic. I didn't know I could, but I wanted you more, so Regina's spell was neutralized when it left me," Rumpel told Bae. "My magic is gone."

No one knew what had happened to the Dark One's power, but Bae began to wonder what could have. His father was the Dark One, there had always been a Dark One. How could the magic just disappear?

"Magic can't just disappear, Papa. It's everywhere. How can-" Bae said, looking at his father. But then, he began to think about other things than magic. His father's magic was gone. They could be together!

"Papa! We can be together," Baelfire exclaimed, hugging his father tighter and burying his face into Rumpel's chest. "You're not the Dark One anymore." The boy began to cry, making Rumpelstiltskin cry a little as well.

"No, Bae. Not anymore," he replied, rubbing his son's shoulder. Belle smiled at them, and Rumpelstiltskin pulled her into him too, forcing her to wrap an arm around Bae as well.

Bae released both of them, thanking Belle for bringing him to the hospital, and then wiping the tears from his face. He looked extremely happy to Rumpel and Belle. Now that the dark magic left his father, there was nothing to come between them.

As long as Bae was awake, Rumpelstiltskin tried to explain all that he could to his son. To Baelfire, this reminded him of when his father would tell him legends and stories before he went to sleep, only this time he was awake, just trying to come around. Belle had fallen asleep almost right away when Mr. Gold began to tell Bae about Regina. She'd been exhausted from the day, so the boys decided to let her sleep in the chair as they whispered to each other.

"Do you think...I can walk around?" Bae asked. Rumpel was hesitant.

"If you really wish to try," he told the boy. "I'll help you." Bae didn't know how his body would treat him, and he felt very sore, and when he pulled back the covers for the first time, he saw all the bandages wrapped around his legs. There were a few on his arms, including a fresh one on his palm, but his legs seemed to sustain more damage.

"At least I didn't break my leg," Bae said, looking to see Dopey still in the chair outside with another dwarf.

"That's Grumpy," Rumpel explained as he took Bae's hands to held him stand up.

His feet weren't too weak, but his left leg hurt more than the right. When his father asked how he felt, Bae let one of his father's hands go, thinking he could balance just fine with one.

"It's the left one," he informed his father, therefore taking hold of Rumpel's right hand. "Hurts, but I want to try."

That was Baelfire.

Bae managed to favor his right leg all the way to the door, where he found that he could stand comfortably without putting too much pressure for his left leg to handle. Rumpel opened the door out into the hall, where the kid took hold of Rumpel's hand again and began to walk. Jefferson smiled, just coming out of Ruby's room.

"Hey, he's walkin'!" the hatter said with a smile. Grumpy turned, and Dopey tried to get a view too, though he couldn't until Grumpy turned him around. The dwarves and Jefferson watched as the boy stood close to his father, looking up at them.

"Who are all of you?" Bae asked, feeling a bit bombarded by people.

"Oh! I'm Jefferson," the hatter introduced himself, thinking just one name was enough for the boy to handle.

"I'm Grumpy," the standing dwarf said. "This is Dopey. He broke his leg when Regina picked him up and threw him from a tree." Bae flinched.

"Stop it you're scaring him," Rumpelstiltskin demanded.

"I'm Baelfire," the boy said, looking at all of them. "Do any of you know what that barking was?"

"Oh, that's Ruby," Jefferson answered, thinking Grumpy had done enough and Dopey wasn't about to say anything anytime soon. "She had some pretty bad wounds, but thanks to your father, they were healing right when she sustained them."

Rumpel sneered at Jefferson, and then the conversation went silent. Bae just wanted to know what happened, thinking that these people could help him understand the situation a little better. With Rumpelstiltskin not seeming to mind, for Bae knew already more than they did, Jefferson told the boy that he, Grumpy, Dopey, David, and Ruby had been holding off Regina.

Bae had done a lot of listening tonight, as he felt he should since he hadn't been conscious for most of the day today, and he continued not to talk much. He was in a lot of pain and only felt like being around his father and Belle. Doc emerged from Ruby's room, seemingly happy to see the boy up and walking.

"Feeling okay?" Doc asked, noticing the boy favoring his right leg.

"I'm sore, but I'll be fine," Bae replied, making Doc smile.

"A stubborn one," he told everyone. "You'll heal in no time. Nothing severe, no broken bones, I'd say you got off pretty lucky."

"So it seems," Bae replied, finding that it was all right to talk. The two took a rest in the chairs since they were in the waiting room. Bae had to get used to this for a while.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter Seventeen: Magic?**

The nights were usually quiet otherwise, and Baelfire managed to sleep in the wee hours of the morning. Rumpelstiltskin only slept for a few hours near his son before Belle was shaking him to wake up.

"Someone wants you," Belle said, yawning as well. It was only eight in the morning. Rumpelstiltskin woke up, seeing Doc, so he got up and walked over, however he found that it wasn't Doc who wanted to speak with him.

They went into Ruby's room where she seemed awake and very much alive. Jefferson and Grumpy were in there too.

"Rumpelstiltskin," Ruby addressed. "We think that Regina has gone deeper into the forrest to create darker magic. What should we do?" He also knew that she was wondering about that blood he made her collect in exchange for the progressive healing magic which would now be forever embedded in her wolf form. As for now, she was still a wolf, wanting to heal before changing completely.

"The blood is useless to me as it is now," Mr. Gold told them. "But, I wanted it for an enchantment I could have used to bring Regina down myself. However, that is no longer possible."

"And why not?" Grumpy demanded, leering at the pawn broker.

"Because I no longer possess magic!" he told them, making everyone grow quickly silent. That wasn't good.

"Now what?" Jefferson sighed. "We have nothing except my hat to go up against her! Wait that's it. Rumpel, travel back in time, get anything you want that has magic in it, but you have to tell me the exact time and place to get it from..."

Rumpelstiltskin thought long and hard about this, thinking about which potion to grab out of his collection after he'd bottled love. However, he shook his head.

"I can't do that," he said, thinking of Baelfire and how he promised him no magic. "I promised my son I would no longer use magic, and since I do not have it, I shall keep it as such."

"Is there anyone else who could do this, besides you?" Ruby asked, leering at him.

This was their only chance to screw Regina up for good and he was blowing it away, but he had to. Using magic now would have told Baelfire that he'd learned nothing. Magic had consumed him, but no matter how tempting it was to reach into the hatter's hat, Gold restrained himself.

"Her blood is the only thing that can strip her of her powers, but without my own magic, the magic that was killing my own son..." Mr. Gold shook his head. "I can't defeat her."

"PAPA!"

At the sound of Bae's voice, Rumpel scurried out of the room without another thought. Doc's voice sounded like he was just trying to keep Bae calm.

When Mr. Gold came into the room, he saw Baelfire looking very scared, though it was obvious as to why.

Around Bae's hand emitted a purple glow.

"What is that?" Bae asked, horrified of himself.

"Calm down, Son," Doc said, holding him back. "It's nothing...calm down."

"Nothing! Papa, what is that?" Bae asked, slowing his breath a little just at the sight of Rumpelstiltskin.

"Bae...that's magic..." Rumpel breathed, unable to believe the sight before his own eyes. "You have magic Bae...looks just like mine."

Bae's eyes scanned the room, and his breath seemed to slow significantly after he found out what it was. However, he was not happy in the slightest.

"Papa, how could this happen? Why do _I_ have magic?" Bae asked, still panicking. Rumpelstiltskin drew the dagger from his coat pocket, finding that his name was erased...

The dagger was blank.

"I don't know...not even your name is on the dagger." Rumpel held out the knife to reveal that it was just an ordinary blade it seemed. He looked at his son, knowing that he must be scared out of his mind, not to mention scarred literally for life.

"Bae, it's all right," Rumpelstiltskin said. "There's nothing I can do to take it away, but you have to listen to me. Bae, you have to trust me."

"I trust you, Papa," Bae replied. "More than anyone."

"Okay, you need to calm yourself. This magic is very powerful and if your emotions get the best of you, anything can happen, all right? So take a few deep breaths, Bae. I'm going to help you as best as I can. I'm going to protect you."

Bae knew that if he really did possess his father's magic, than only his father could help him learn how to use it and most importantly, control it. He found that as long as breathed, everything seemed to be fine. Closing his eyes, he listened as Rumpelstiltskin told him vital information.

"I'm going to ask you to do something for me, Bae. You have to get used to the feeling of magic. It will not bother you in everyday activities. Magic only comes if you conjure it, all right? Now, I want you to focus on something small. Picture a glass of whatever you like right in your hands..." He saw Bae trying to concetrate and then he saw the glass beginning to appear.

"Hold out your hands," Rumpel said quickly, and Bae found that a glass was really there. "Keep your eyes closed." Bae did so, and then when his father told him to open them, he saw a large glass of milk in his hands.

"That's incredible!" Bae exclaimed, but then he wanted to talk to his father alone. Doc left the room, and he explained to those watching from the outside what was happening and why Baelfire suddenly had magic.

"Papa, does this mean I'm the Dark One now?" Bae asked worried.

"You know, Son," he said, sitting down and showing Bae the knife. "I don't think so. Your name is not on this dagger, so no one can control you. You have the magic but not the curse that comes with it."

Bae knew that his father couldn't answer why that was, so he didn't even bother asking.

Belle entered the room just then, wanting to present an idea.

"You know, from what I've gathered around, you were a desperate man, Rumpelstiltskin," she said, sitting down. "Perhaps the magic knew it could control you, so you let it. But Baelfire, he doesn't seem like he would sucume to magic."

Baelfire then remembered something that an old sea captain told him long ago.

"You know, when I first arrived in this world-" Bae knew this brought back an deep, open wound, but he thought this was important. "I ran into this old sea captain, and as I was becoming sea sick from all the ship's rocking, I'd been asking him if the sea was just evil or I was actually sick. He told me that there was no such thing as evil..."

"How is that Bae? Without evil, there is no good," Rumpelstiltskin asked.

"Well, that's what I asked. And he told me that without good, there is no evil either. He said that evil was just another way of looking at something that is right."

"I'm confused," Belle said, wanting him to continue what he meant.

"Well, if we can't have good without evil or evil without good, then they are just two sides of one problem. Each side thinks they are fighting for the good side, it's just that not everyone sees everything the same way. So, we understand what we think is good and what we think is bad. Then he told me that the sea was both-that the sea was simply itself, and therefore acted as a sea should, so we had to adjust to the sea because it was the more powerful between the two of us. So the sea was never evil as I thought it was, it was just simply the sea," Baelfire explained. "Maybe the same applies with magic."

"Oh," Belle said, thinking she finally understood. "So, you're saying that there is no good magic and bad? You're saying that it's just magic?"

Bae nodded.

"It all depends on how I use it and what I think I use it for," Bae said. "I think."

Rumpelstiltskin, thinking upon this, realized that Bae actually did make a lot of sense. When he let his son go into the vortex, all of his energy was placed into finding his son. He thought that that was a good thing to do, the right thing to do because he felt he owed it to his son. When he created the curse for Regina, he thought it was good because it would help him find Bae, but everyone else didn't agree with this obviously because they didn't know his tale. No one did. When he first killed the Dark One, it was for pure power, and so the magic was able to become more powerful then him. Thus, he conformed to the magic; but Bae, his intention was never to have magic, so now that it was forced into him, the magic had to reform to _him_. He just had to learn how to control it.

"So, the magic of the Dark One was never really dark," Rumpelstiltskin said, looking down at the dagger. "That doesn't make sense. Your name should still appear on this dagger."

"I didn't kill anyone, Papa," Bae said. That was true. The magic forced itself into Bae when Rumpelstiltskin gave it up to save his life. "So why should it?"

"Wait, you aren't hurt by your own magic?" Doc asked, having to come into the room. "Didn't Regina put a spell on you still?"

"No, it was attached to me," Rumpel answered. "Of course he's not hurt! The magic is his now...not mine."

He knew that the magic was probably better off with his son anyway. The magic of the Dark One had not disappeared, Bae was right, but now he was stuck with the very thing he'd been against from the moment his father had it.

"Bae...I know it's not what you expected," Rumpel said, reaching for his son, however Bae looked down, refusing his father's hand.

"I'll just have to get used to it...besides we didn't know what would happen," Bae said, though internally he was exceedingly upset that magic was inside of him. Knowing that it was not evil calmed him, but his father had used it so wrongfully that all those images were engraved in his mind.

"It's okay. Maybe I'll learn something new about magic," Bae said. Belle knew that if Bae had magic, he would only use it for the better purpose. That glass of milk was probably the only thing Bae would conjure for himself out of pleasure, and even that was for training purposes too. He had a lot to learn.

"Wait, if Bae has your magic, then he has the same powers you did..." Belle said. "I know you need magic to stop Regina..."

"No!" Rumpelstiltskin said immediately, but Ruby had already caught wind of their conversation.

"Yes!" the wolf shot back. "It's our only chance! He has to do it. He can conjure the spell you were going to and stop the queen."

"No, are you mad? He's merely accepted the fact that he even _has_ magic! There's no way he'll be able to conjure something powerful enough to defeat her," Rumpel contradicted. Then, he turned to Bae.

"We'll find another way," he told the boy, but Bae shook his head.

"I've tried that before," Baelfire replied. "Do you think I can do it, Papa?"

"With my magic...of course you can," Rumpel said. "But you're not=-"

"Then teach me. Teach me all you can, Papa. I want to help," Bae said.

"Whoa whoa whoa," Grumpy halted the party, pointing at the boy. "Not even a day ago you were in Regina's grasp fighting for your life, and now you want to help us fight back?"

The dwarf was clearly confused, but Baelfire nodded.

"Of course I want to help. If I am to have this magic it should be used for good and if this Evil Queen you all are calling Regina is truly the problem here, I should do everything I can because I see your side of what is good," Bae told the dwarf, making Grumpy smile. Bae's tone made it sound like he was arguing with them but he wasn't going to take it any longer.

Bae turned to Rumpelstiltskin, the look of a true knight shinning in his eyes. How could he refuse a chance to get back at Regina...and to train Bae in the ways of magic?


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter Eighteen: Fighting Fire with Baelfire**

Rumpel knew he didn't have a lot of time, so there wasn't much he could teach Bae. He tried to outline some tips in his head about the properties of magic.

"Okay, Son, this is probably going to be the most important," Rumpel said. "It's not very hard, but you're going to need it."

He'd taken Baelfire out of the hospital and back to the pawn shop, partially carrying him along the way.

"What is it?" the boy asked as he watched his father rummage through drawers and shelves.

"Well, I can't be carrying you onto the field of battle now can I?" Rumpel took out a book from the shelf, searching for another.

"No," Bae replied, watching his father.

"Then, if what you say is true, and that any magic can be used for either good or bad, then your magic is probably the most deadly on this earth."

Bae only blinked, a little nervous at what his father was telling him so far.

Rumpelstiltskin dropped two heavy books onto his desk, which he'd cleared off the previous day, not knowing this is what he'd do next with it. He explained to Bae that one of the books was healing magic, and the other was a compilation of other various spells. Bae flipped through the first book, asking his father how he was supposed to read all of this.

"I know you can read some of it," Rumpelstiltskin said. "I'm sure you've looked into my books without my knowledge before."

At that, Bae's expression faltered a little. His father pointed a finger at him in banter.

"Ah!" his father said.

"But I only did it because-" Bae began.

"Neh neh! Nehnehneh," Rumpelstiltskin said. "I don't want to hear it. Now, this is the one I want you to learn."

They spent hours together, as much time as they could, in the pawn shop, looking at many healing spells, Rumpelstiltskin held up the dagger, wanting Bae to test it out. Rumpelstiltskin held it to his arm.

"Papa!" Bae exclaimed. "Why must you do this?"

"I'm teaching you. You're going to heal me. When Regina hurts you in battle, and she won't be afraid to, believe me Bae, I want you to know how to heal yourself, whether it be broken bones or deep cuts. You have to be on your guard."

Rumpelstiltskin slit a gash onto his wrist, barely flinching. His pain tolerance had grown very high.

Bae, knowing that he wanted to heal his father, glanced at the book and then placed his head over his father's arm, reminded of when he was the one sitting in the chair needing the medicine. He did as his father instructed him to, not saying any of the words to the spells, only thinking about them and arranging them in his mind.

The boy not longer shut his eyes, for Rumpel forbid it since his first conjuring. When they saw the wound begin to close, Bae's eyes lit up. He was learning. The Dark One's magic was not, in any reality, dark at all. It was myth, a legend that was over exaggerated because each time someone became the Dark One, they did not want the price of the magic that came along with it. Like Rumpelstiltskin was, they too were desperate souls, but now that Bae had the magic, he seemed to accept it for what it was.

Rumpel slit himself again, telling his son to try a different spell. Quickly, Bae thought about the words in the first spell he'd used and then placed other words in his mind relating to what type of healing he wanted. He was making his own magic spells, though they were probably written down somewhere in a book, just in a different order.

He could see the look of surprise and pride in his father's eyes as he healed another injury.

Rumpel thought that was enough for healing magic, but Bae was persistent.

"Can I heal Dopey?" Bae asked his father. "It would give me practice for a broken bone."

Rumpelstiltskin gave into this, knowing it would only make the boy more prepared. Bae himself was able to walk normally now because of the magic itself inside of him. This must have been how his father never limped after he became the Dark One. Still, Rumpelstiltskin could not get over the fact that the dagger was blank. It was as if the Dark One's curse had disappeared.

As they walked from the pawn shop, Bae began to question the laws of magic once again.

"Hey Papa, remember when you told me that all magic comes with a price?" Bae asked. Rumpel looked at his son, waiting for him to further explain.

"Well, if I'm using all this magic, then what will the price be?" Bae asked.

"Bae, the price of magic is like a fine print of a contract," Mr. Gold began. "I always expected something in return for my services."

"So, if I don't want anything in return," Bae pondered. "Then that means there is no price for anyone to pay?"

"Bae, I don't know. I gave up the magic to save you. The price of the magic was it was taken from me and given to you. Right now, you are only scratching the surface of what you can do. There is no price for healing magic, that I know. You're the one in control now, Bae. You can do whatever you please with the magic. Just know that if you come across anyone asking you to make someone fall in love, it cannot be done."

"You bottled love," Bae pointed out.

"Because I knew how to do it," Rumpel said. "And where to get my resources."

"You were always good at manipulating people," Bae sighed, though Rumpel didn't know if that was a compliment or a tone of disproval.

The two walked into the hospital, asking for Dopey. When Doc led them into the room where the dwarf was lying with Grumpy and Sneezy, they grew cautious. After explaining Bae's purpose, Grumpy stood up, not sure what to think of all this.

"You say it yourself," he pointed to Bae's father. "All magic comes with a price. How do we know we won't be the one paying it?"

"Because with me, there would have been one," Rumpel snapped, stepping forward. "The tides have turned, dearie. My son isn't even the Dark One."

Grumpy stepped down, for although Mr. Gold no longer possessed magic, he was still a frightening and dangerous person. Bae walked over to Dopey, sitting on the bed and sighing.

"This won't hurt," the boy told Dopey. "I promise."

The dwarf looked at Bae, seeing a pure intent of good, and he still stared as the boy placed his hand over his broken leg. So fascinated was Dopey at the glow of purple around Bae's hand, that he didn't even think about what was going on. Bae announced that the magic should have set in, the dwarves looked at each other.

Grumpy ran to fetch Doc, demanding that the cast on Dopey come off. Doc shook his head, but after Bae's plight, Dopey's leg was free. Since Bae enacted the magic, he also offered to help Dopey stand. At first, Dopey stood on his good leg only, but Bae encouraged him to let the other one down. Gaining enough courage and trust in Baelfire, Dopey put down his leg.

"If you fall, I'll catch you," Bae promised, and as he held Dopey's hands, the dwarf walked forward, finding that with each step, it was as though his leg was never broken.

"Are you okay, Dopey?" Doc asked in shock. The dwarf nodded his head up and down over and over again, a smile coming upon his face. Bae smiled wide too, seeing that his efforts were paying off.

Bae released Dopey's hands, and Dopey proceeded to hug Bae, nearly tripping over his feet he was so happy his pain was gone. Bae hugged the dwarf in return.

"You're welcome," Bae replied. "Thank you for letting me practice my magic too." Doc's eyes widened.

"He can heal broken bones?" Doc asked, feeling his glasses fall down his nose a little.

"Of course he can," Rumpelstiltskin said proudly. "We're just experimenting with what I can teach him before Regina come back around."

"I don't think we should wait," Ruby said, walking out on all fours. "We should chase her. She could come back far worse, and then we'll never have a chance!"

"Unless we catch her off guard," Doc suggested, taking of his glasses and walking into the circle of people in Dopey's room. "She doesn't know Bae has taken over Rumpelstiltskin's power. We could let her figure that out for herself, but by then, it'll have been too late."

"Whatcha thinkin' Doc?" Sneezy asked.

"Well, can people of magic sense others that have magic?" Doc asked Rumpel.

"Fairies can, I know that," Rumpel replied in slight annoyance. "But no, I don't think she'd even notice. Bae's essence was always touched by magic."

Doc huddled them all in to explain his plan to them, but although the plan was pretty well thought out, Rumpel wanted more time. He wanted to teach Bae more than just healing magic before he went out to fight the queen. Before _all_ of them went to fight the queen. Of course, Grumpy demanded to know how much time Rumpel had in mind, but of course, Rumpel didn't have an exact for him.

However, Rumpel also knew that if Regina wanted to, she could have easily come back and killed Bae. The fact she did not do such indicated to Rumpelstiltskin that her grudge was still against him, and Bae was just leverage. Since his son now possessed the magic, they could get in close.

He told Grumpy he only needed six hours, five at the least, to teach Bae what he was going to do to Regina. He took the vile Ruby collected from Regina out of his pocket, holding it up for all to see, turning to Bae.

"This has Regina's magic in it. She was born with it, therefore it flows through her veins and with this, you can destroy her. But first, you have mix it with a few things. You cannot practice with it, you can only learn how to do it," Rumpel explained.

"Will this have a price?" Bae asked.

"Yes," Rumpel replied. "This is no child's play. If you do this right, your own magic will become severely weak for about two months I was guessing. I've never done this before either. By severely weak I mean don't use it."

Bae pulled his father to the side, not wanting anyone to hear what he had to say next. Not that his encouragement was their business to listen to anyway.

"What if I screw up?" Bae asked, worry in his eyes. His father looked him straight in the eyes, smiled definitively, and then spoke with certainty.

"You won't."


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter Nineteen: New Territory**

The father and son paid a visit to the hospitals laboratory where they gathered a few bowls and grinders. Rumpelstiltskin returned to the house, gathering a few things that would need to be mixed into the compound to stop Regina. When he entered the lab again, Bae was observing something in a microscope with one of the other doctors.

"Bae," his father called, and the boy immediately came back to their set up. He handed the boy a few crystals, placing the rest in the bowl.

"Crush them in the bowl, grind 'em up good," Rumpel instructed, but when Bae reached for the grinder, his father refused him.

"Why would I use magic for something like this?" Bae asked. "It can easily be done with the-"

"Bae, if you're in shackles, I want you to be able to break free of them," Rumpel interrupted. Though Bae thought there wasn't really a need, he satisfied his father in crushing the crystals in his hands to dust and then dropping them into the bowl.

"Happy?" Bae asked. "It wasn't that hard."

"Good. Good, I was just making sure," Rumpel replied. "The magic making you weak at all?"

Bae shook his head as he continued to grind the remaining crystals with the grinder, as everyone else did.

"After your done with that, I'll have something for you to add it in." Rumpelstiltskin had one of Belle's large cooking pots, and he began taking various things he gathered from the house and placing them into the pot.

"Bae," he called to his son, who was almost finished grinding the crystals. "I need water. Pure water." Bae knew that meant he had to use his magic again. He felt odd, knowing that all it took were a few thoughts and words in an extinct language to make anything he wanted. Well, anything material that is.

His father told him when he'd conjured enough, and then he saw his father quickly slice up a few roots and add them to the mix. Then, Baelfire dumped the crystal powder into the mix. Rumpelstiltskin didn't know how to describe that Bae mix the ingredients, so he thought just to let Bae try and he'd guide his son if there was something seriously wrong. Bae shrugged, and shut his eyes for this one, thinking that if he looked, it would only distract him.

He began to think of simply swirling them together until they became one, but Rumpel quickly corrected him.

"Think um...think more calm and...think of fire." Bae thought that sounded very strange, but he did as he was told. Rumpel observed the contents and the very fact Bae somehow got fire to dance atop water. He could see the crystals glowing in the pot like little lava pellets for the water was becoming extremely hot.

"Blue fire, Bae. Blue fire," he said next, and the color of the flame changed a few moments later. "Okay stop."

Rumpelstiltskin took the Dark One's dagger and dipped it into the mixture, causing steam to rise from the pot. The knife was cold as ice. Baelfire opened his eyes.

"What's that?" he asked his father, staring at the knife which shone bright with a silver tint and glistening of melted silver crystal pellets all around the blade. Rumpelstiltskin took out the vile of Regina's blood, placing some on the tip of the blade. Then, he dumped half of it into the pot to dye it red.

"Bae this is going to be strange, but I need you to do exactly as I say. Keep your eyes open please."

Without another word, Baelfire turned to the pot.

"Stare into the pot and think about it being full of blood. All of it. Imagine the whole thing is blood. Regina's blood."

Bae felt too sickened to imagine that, and Rumpelstiltskin could tell.

"Okay, think about blood in general," he tried that. Bae bit his lower lip, held out his hand towards the pot and let the purple emit from his hand.

The entire pot turned to blood. Rumpel took the vile again, adding a little more of Regina's blood, causing the entire pot to boil for a few moments. When it calmed, Rumpel explained himself.

"Now, I'm going to dip the dagger into her blood and soon, we will have the perfect weapon against Regina. I'm sorry to put you through that son," Rumpel confessed. "I knew you wouldn't conjure an entire pot of blood without some sort of price on your mind. I've taught you well."

"It's just too strange Papa," Bae told Mr. Gold. "That's a lot of blood and I don't think I've ever seen so much of it in one place." Bae turned his head away as his father's hand withdrew the dagger from the pot.

"It's not blood anymore," Rumpel told him, and sure enough, when the boy turned his head back, all that remained was a pot of water with a repulsive oder.

"Yeah, I wouldn't drink that," Rumpel said, and then Bae saw the dagger of the Dark One.

"Why would I use that knife? Maybe my name just hasn't appeared yet. I could kill myself!" Bae panicked.

Rumpelstiltskin reassured him that there was nothing to worry about. His name would never appear on this dagger and Bae couldn't take Regina's power, he could only strip her of it. The magic would leave Regina forever and she would be powerless. The pellets of the melted crushed crystals still glistened on the dagger in all different colors.

The pawn shop owner handed the dagger over to his son, who took it wearily.

"All you have to do is keep that safe, don't let Regina see it, and be sure to stab her anywhere but her head or her heart," Rumpel told him.

"Why?"

"That could kill her."

"I thought you wanted her dead."

"Do you?" Rumpel asked. That was good point. Bae didn't have any reason to wish death upon anyone. Giving into the urge to kill someone was to heed to the darkness, and that could be treading dangerous waters. The boy shook his head, understanding the point his father was trying to make.

"Why can't you do this?" Bae asked.

"Because she doesn't know you have magic. She's kidnapped you before, she'll do it again."

"Not if you don't fight, she'll suspect something for sure," Bae argued.

"If she does she still can't tell which one of us has the magic. I've had it for so many years I'm sure the essence has yet to wear off, and you've always had it around you," Rumpel told his son.

"All right, but if worst comes to worst...I'm throwing Emma the dagger."

"Emma?"

"She's the savior right?" Bae asked. "Well she has yet to save me, not that she'll have to, but just in case..."

"If she's not within reach, I want you to toss it to me," Rumpel told him.

"All right, deal," Baelfire said with a smirk on his face.

"You mock me, Bae!" Rumpel replied with a laugh as he spoke.

A howl ripped through the air, and seconds later, Doc came scrambling into the room.

"I hope you're ready," Doc panted. "I think she's returned."

Bae and his father threw each other a glance before rushing out the doors of the hospital, looking out onto Storybrooke. Emma, Ruby, David, Snow, Grumpy, and Dopey stood around as well.

"Well?" Mr. Gold asked. "Did anyone see her?"

Bae held the knife's handle as it rested within a sheath at his side, hidden in his brown cloak.

"No, but I can smell her. She's about a mile out. Probably in the forrest," Ruby walked over to the two. "You know, I see the relation now. You're both stubborn." Bae smirked.

"If we don't want to leave this place in ruin, I suggest we take this to the woodland," Grumpy said.

The others agreed while Bae walked over to Emma for a moment, whispering what he might end up doing if he couldn't reach Regina despite his father's advice. He also told her to stab Regina anywhere she pleased. If he wasn't killing, then the weight was not upon his conscious. The savior nodded in understanding.

Red nudged Bae.

"You ready?" she asked.

"As ready as I can be," he answered.

"Well come on, we're sitting ducks around her," David said, drawing his sword.

He led the walk out into the woods. Snow followed at once. Mr. Gold hesitated to come but he knew he had to if this plan was going to work. For once, he knew how it felt to be everyone else: walking into the presence of someone with magic when he himself possessed none. It was a helpless feeling of dread.

"No way you're walking," Ruby said, laying on her stomach after she hit her head against Baelfire's side. "Hop on and hold on. You'll need your strength for later."

Bae cautiously mounted onto the wolf, finding she was fairly large and that he was a good height off the ground. His father walked beside him, thinking about what he'd gotten himself into.

The curse...all to get his son back. His magic, all to get his son back. All the hardships, just to get his son back. Now, he had Bae, but there was still something unsettling inside of him. Great danger is all that seemed to follow Regina. Mr. Gold played the defensive... the majority of the time. Entirely, the situation was a paradox. Bae had always loathed his father's magic, now he owns it. Rumpelstiltskin, he felt sorrow upon losing his magic. His power was pretty much gone...especially around here now that magic has returned.

Without Regina or himself having magic, there was nothing too exciting. Everyone would have a happily ever after. Perhaps that is what Bae saw in this world, and he wanted it sooner than everyone else. He wanted to be with his father.

Everything swirled inside of Mr. Gold's head, and Bae glanced to his father, not knowing what to say so he sat silent on the wolf, finding it strange to be riding Ruby. Grasping deep into her fur, he clasped tighter.

"I've got a bad feeling," Bae whispered, leaning forward towards her ear.

"You feel it too?" she whispered, glancing to see if Rumpel was paying attention. Clearly he was not. Perfect.

"Hang on kid. I'm gonna pick up the pace. This group is a pile of sitting geese."

Baelfire grasped Ruby's fur tighter, making sure everything was in place, and when she felt he was secure, she darted suddenly past Rumpel and then even David. Rumpelstiltskin snapped out of his thoughts, thinking to shout to Ruby about what she thought she was doing. However, that would only tell Regina where they were...

"Where are you going?" ...and David beat him to the question.

Ruby glanced back, telling Bae to remain silent.

"We're wide out in the open," Ruby said simply and then darted off again. Rumpelstiltskin admired his son atop the wolf as she took off while the others stood confused as to what she meant.

Ruby ran, jumping over countless logs and maneuvering through the sticks and amongst the stones.

"What about the others?" Bae asked.

"They'll catch up. Don't worry, we're close, but she's up to something. We have to catch her before she can enact another enchantment!" Ruby exclaimed.

Bae held on tight, facing forward as he felt Ruby's body shift as she jumped and whenever she took a sharp corner. His balance was remarkable, better than he thought it would be at the very least, and Ruby was impressed he was still hanging on.

She stopped suddenly, telling Bae she knew Regina was just up ahead, and as she weaved silently through the trees, the boy tried to spot her. It wasn't too difficult, for she was the only thing clothed in black in the middle of the forest. She seemed leaned over a large fire, where there was also a large pit surrounded with stones. A book at her side, the Evil Queen was obviously doing something with magic.

Bae found he could sense her magic, and how powerful it was!

"I can feel her power," Bae whispered. "She's gonna be tough to stop."

"Well, she _is_ a queen. We better think of something quick before the others catch up," Ruby replied. Bae nodded.

"I have an idea."


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter Twenty: Something Worth Seeing**

Ruby couldn't believe this one! Although the plan was fairly good, perhaps even border-lining genius, she didn't want to have to act innocent. Bae dismounted Ruby, placing his hand over her back, closing his eyes. It was the bast way he could focus. Within seconds, Ruby had transformed into a small Dalmatian puppy.

Bae sent her out to the queen while he riled up his magic, causing the purple to nearly overflow in his hands.

Regina turned at the sound of a tiny bark, seeing the small puppy. Ignoring it, she returned to her work, hoping the little rat would go away. However, she became more of a nuisance than anything as she began to nip at Regina's ankles.

"Get away or I'll burn you at the stake for the miserable mutt you are," Regina scolded, turning back to her work. It was the forest so her tolerance of annoyance was higher than usual. Still, the puppy persisted and then began head butting Regina in the leg, nearly making her trip.

"That's it!"

Just as she went for the puppy, Bae had taken a shot with his magic. Instead of hitting her as he intended, he hit the fire, completely extinguishing it. Swearing under his breath, Bae remained hidden among the trees, transforming Ruby back into a wolf. By then, Regina turned back to see her biting at her ankles again, this time more furious!

With magic, she forced the wolf back, but she was fresh for the fight, reeling back instantly. Smiling with satisfaction, Regina looked amongst the trees.

"You're a little rusty, Rumpel," she yelled. Bae knew he had to use all the magic he could before his father got here. But he had to stay hidden. "Where are you hiding?"

Bae watched as Ruby snarled and growled at Regina, but the queen seemed to be holding her in place. Confident in his magic, Baelfire released Ruby from her bonds. Regina glanced back into the trees, and each time Bae knew she was getting closer and closer to his location.

Finally, the boy took another shot at the Regina, hitting her dead in the center, causing her to flip backwards, but like a cat, she landed on her feet. Ruby charged, jumping onto her back. Regina spun around, throwing the wolf off of her and creating a magical barrier. Bae didn't know what to do with that.

"Nothing beats nature," he told himself, thinking and hoping that was true. He took a silent shot at at tree, sending it tumbling down towards Regina, and then he proceeded to distract her with balls of energy. By the time she figured out the tree was there, her barrier was gone.

Bae took that precious time to strike with fire, but she returned the favor, setting the forest on fire, almost forcing him out of hiding.

"Come on out Rumpel," Regina said. "You don't have to hide from me."

Bae thought to just stay put, but then he had a faster idea, and he could sense people were nearby.

"PAPA!" Bae called randomly into the forest. This would help his father find him number one, and number two, it would help his plan immensely.

Just as he suspected, Regina reached in with her magic. He allowed her to catch him and reel him in.

"What are _you_ doing out here?" she asked as she held him by the throat. Bae struggled against her, faking it mostly.

"PAPA!" he shouted again, and Ruby lunged to save him, but the queen spun around, sending her into the forest of flames. The wolf came running back.

"BAE!"

Rumpelstiltskin had emerged from the flames first, followed by David, Emma, Snow, and the dwarves.

"Put the kid down," Grumpy demanded, readying his pick ax. Dopey stood behind him with the crossbow Granny left for him.

"Well Rumpel," Regina said. "Did you find out the price of your magic?"

"Yes, I did, now put my son down," Mr. Gold said, walking steadily towards her and Bae.

"I'm willing to make a deal-"

"There are no deals." That was the end of that conversation for him.

"Oh but this one's a bargain. All you have to do is agree to give me your magic."

Rumpel saw the expression on Bae's face, and it held a smirk. Ruby fell back, though being held to the ground by Regina's magic helped only some, seeing the boy's plan finally settling in.

"That's it?" Rumpelstiltskin replied. "That's all you want?"

"Yes, why? What more is there?" Regina asked in sarcasm. Rumpelstiltskin offered a faint smile, and that's when Regina let Baelfire down beside her. Bae place his hands on his knees, sighing. Mr. Gold walked towards her, and he focused purely on Regina, hoping Bae knew what he was doing.

"Nothing I suppose," Rumpel said. "All right, Your Majesty. You win...take it, but then give me the boy."

"You first," Regina insisted. "Take your place at the pit." Rumpelstiltskin walked over to the fire pit, and the Evil Queen proceeded to relight it with both hands, still constricting Bae and Ruby.

"Gold no!" Emma shouted, pulling the gun, but everyone ignored that. It was a habit, but Emma knew the gun really wouldn't do anything; however, she liked the security the gun provided for her.

Regina held the book up and began reciting the words, and it was then Bae realized how powerful his magic could be. Without the words, he was not confined to any book, but her magic was. If she had his father's magic, she'd be the single, most powerful person the world. Too bad Rumpel didn't have his magic anymore...

"Give it up Gold. Stop fighting. You want this. You want your son don't you?" Regina asked. Gold then lay limp in the air, and that was Bae's cue. Regina had released her hold on him.

She gave a look of confusion, finding the Rumpelstiltskin's magic was not allowing itself to be removed form him. Bae had made a split second decision just then.

He stabbed her in the back of the neck, scathing his way down to the middle of her back. Rumpel saw her face alter as she stared blankly defeated.

"I don't _have_ any magic, dearie," Rumpel said, a smile imprinted on his face as her magic at once let him go, sending him to land on his feet just in front of the fire. Regina fell to the floor, revealing to him Baelfire with the bloodstained knife.

"Son...you killed her," Mr. Gold said.

"I've seen her power, and though this may haunt me for the rest of my life, I am relieved to have helped. My conscious is clear," Bae replied. Rumpelstiltskin ran to his son, grasping the boy into a hug.

He'd never dreamed his son would have to kill anyone, much less Regina. The crowd stood in shock, and Ruby came to Bae, nudging his side. The battle was much faster than Bae had anticipated. Then again, they'd caught her by surprise.

The trees cleared up, though the burning patches would take time to go away. Magic was not completely gone from the scene of catastrophe.

An aurora fell around Regina, and then a mist came into the fire. Rumpel told them that it was Regina's magic, and that it was finally leaving her body. Bae held the dagger in his hands, pointing to her body.

"Papa!" Bae said. "Why is she healing?"

True enough, the wounds on her back were healing, they closed with perfect stitching up her back and neck. Rumpelstiltskin, astounded rattled off a myth he heard a long long time ago.

"If magic bore itself within thee, an aurora for all to see, for when thy magical force released matures, a resurrection of thine soul will thus occur..." he breathed. "Impossible..."

"What are talking about Papa?" Bae asked.

"She was born with a connection to magic. It's grown strong and been very valuable to her. Now that it's gone...it's giving her a second chance at life," Rumpelstiltskin explained. "I thought that was just a myth spread by kings to justify their divinity and rights to the throne by expressing a sense of rebirth within the soul because of magic."

"Great! Just what we need!" Grumpy shouted as Regina lay on the floor. "Another Regina!"

"She doesn't have magic," Rumpelstiltskin said, turning to his son. "And you must never give it to her. Never give it to anyone...I know you hate it Bae...but you have to keep it safe."

"I don't hate it Papa, I just don't like to use it unless it has a real purpose," Bae said. "I'm stuck with it now."

Hearing that last phrase made Rumpel's heart sink a little inside. The boy didn't sound happy, but he didn't sound too disappointed either. The dwarves were not happy about Regina coming back to life, in fact they sounded horrified.

"Well magic or no magic, she's still evil," Snow said, observing the body. "But she'll be far less powerful than before. She'll be one of us...like Mr. Gold."

Ruby transformed back into a girl and came next to Bae. Her wounds were healing already from Rumpelstiltskin's magic. Bae could sense Ruby's gratitude for Rumpelstiltskin, but she came to congratulate him for his work on taking Regina's magic.

"So I didn't kill her then?" Bae asked in a higher pitched voice. In fact, he sounded a little relieved.

"No," Red said. "But I'm not talking to her, magic or none. She should really just get out of town."

Rumpelstiltskin took his son away from the others, and the dwarves announced they would drag Regina back to town, and literally that is what they did because in their eyes, it was good enough for the likes of her. Ruby looked back before walking back with Snow and David.

"Bae," Rumpel said, looking at his son. "I'm so sorry Son...for the magic, for everything."

Bae hugged his father again, talking with him on their way back to town where Belle was awaiting their return. Bae gave Belle a hug as did Rumpelstiltskin.

"Belle," Rumpel said. "Thank you...for everything you've done for me. If there is anything I can do to repay you for what I put you through, name it and it's yours."

Belle smirked, thinking of the most ridiculous thing possible. She tried to speak but nothing came out and instead, she exhaled into laughter.

"I have something," she assured him. He looked at her curiously and she'd caught Bae's attention too. They were on the streets, ready to walk back to the house.

"You can stop wearing those leather pants," Belle said. Bae's eyes widened and his jaw dropped as he too, burst into laughter. The image of his father in leather pants amused him greatly, and Rumpel sighed, rolling his eyes as he turned his head to the side.

"You wear leather pants?" Bae asked in shock, looking at Belle who nodded. "Since when?"

"Ever since I've known him," Belle sighed, turning back to Rumpel. "And they look absolutely, undeniably ridiculous on you now." Bae continued laughing.

His head came back up, his tongue resting between his teeth on the right side of his mouth, and he let out another side.

"Very well," Rumpelstiltskin said. "I'll give them to Baelfire."

"Oh I _have_ to see this!" Bae exclaimed.


	21. Chapter 21

A/N: This is the last chapter! Thanks to all who have reviewed (keep reviewing btw) Thanks also to Promise777, we worked on the ideas together :)

**Chapter Twenty-One: The Final Word**

"I've kept a few trinkets from the past," Mr. Gold told them. "I just keep them in places you'd _never_ look." They were back inside the house and Rumpelstiltskin had just showed them that they also had an attic in their house, he just never went up there.

After he undid the latch and the lock that went along with it, they headed up the staircase just off the side in Rumpel's room.

"So that's why you never let me in here to clean up," Belle said.

"Of course, not with your curiosity," Rumpel said, shaking his head. As they headed up the rickety old staircase, Bae smelt something familiar about the place. His first view was all he needed to see.

"Gold!" Belle gasped.

"You always said I'd spun more than I could ever spend," Mr. Gold said, eyeing Belle as she too, recalled that memory, but more importantly what happened soon after...

She shook her head.

"We're still rich," Rumpel said with a wide grin, looking at Bae who smirked.

The boy looked around, seeing that the entire left half of the attic was gold. The other half contained smaller tokens. He found his old set of clothing before his father became the Dark One, wanting to keep the set for himself.

Rumpel allowed him this, and then Belle spotted the chipped cup in the corner on an end table.

"After Regina took that," Rumpel interjected as she picked it up. "I put it up here where no one could take from me again."

"You held onto this?" Belle asked, looking at him with a smile on her face. "Why? It's just a chipped cup."

Mr. Gold fell silent for a moment.

"It was the last I had of you after Regina told me you were dead," Rumpel replied.

"Oh," she said, setting it back on the table. She walked over to Rumpelstiltskin to hug him, feeling him return her favor, but he could only offer her one arm. Belle looked up at Rumpel, and unable to restrain herself, she kissed him.

Bae happened to look over.

"Ewwwww!" he exclaimed in sarcasm, then he started laughing as his father found his kickball and gave it a hard kick across the room with his good leg. Bae dodged the ball, catching it in his hand.

"Not in the house boys!" Belle exclaimed, but she was smiling too.

* * *

That evening, Bae and his father were taking care of the shop, though they were not open for business. Baelfire found a sword in one of the cases on display. He turned to his father.

"Papa, how long has been since you've handled a sword?" Bae asked.

"A sword?" Rumpel asked. "Well, I handled one against Prince James here before he got married to Snow White. Otherwise, not too often."

"We should duel," Bae suggested, returning to his job of straightening the shop and cleaning off some of the antiques. He saw that look in his father's eyes...

"Drop it," Rumpel said, and Bae dropped the rag, reaching behind the counter for two swords, tossing one to his father and then bolting out the door.

Rumpel caught up with him in the lot just outside the shop. The blades clashed, and Bae found that his father was quite rusty.

"Come on Papa!" Bae scolded, bantering with him.

"Oh yeah? When was the last time you held a sword?" Rumpelstiltskin asked as he came in close to Bae with the blades crossed between them.

"A few months ago," he replied, thrusting his father back.

"Ha!" Rumpel said as he blocked Bae's head strike. He spun around, getting Baelfire to back up. Out of breath, Rumpel paused the duel to lock up the shop, starting with his office, and then going to the front door...

* * *

That evening, Belle had a large pot of soup on the stove, hoping the two would come back home eventually. She'd just taken out the bowls for each of them, when she heard the door open.

"There you two are," Belle greeted them, then seeing their condition. Each was panting, smiling and they were just in the middle of a conversation. "What were you doing?"

"I just bested him in a duel," Bae said, allowing their swords to rest in the sheaths up against the couch in the living room. She saw Rumpel's face.

"It's not untrue," he admitted, and Belle smiled, shaking her head before she kissed him quickly.

"Soup's on," she informed them, and Baelfire came running to the table. His stomach had been begging for food all afternoon.

Belle told the two about Regina. With her power stripped from her, she has still been making some of a recovery at the hospital, but her attitude was lost without her power and she seemed so full of pride she didn't speak much. Bae was happy he didn't kill her, and he feared that he'd been giving in to the darker side of himself.

Still, Baelfire's name never appeared on the dagger, though his father watched closely for it each and every day. The Dark One seemed to be a thing of the past, and now they could finally start over. Rumpel had Belle _and_ Baelfire, finally able to see what his son saw in a life without magic. Belle was simply happy to have Rumpelstiltskin back and to remember her past. Baelfire, he gained a lot more than he bargained for, but that's how things always seemed to work around his father.

They could finally live their happily ever after, magic and all.


End file.
